With the dry spell starting to raise questions over whether a drought may be on the horizon, optimising biostimulant products can help vegetable growers prepare for any potential stress ahead – be prepared for stress with Bridgeway.
Though it seems not long ago that the UK was burdened with continued rain and flooding, rising temperatures over the recent weeks and lack of precipitation is starting to cause concern for some in the vegetable sector. “So far, it’s a been a fairly normal cropping year, but it will be a big problem if we do get a drought,” says Keith Brand, agronomist at Hutchinsons.
To prepare for what may lie ahead, Keith recommends the use of biostimulant products to boost crop health – specifically, amino acid biostimulant Bridgeway. “I’ve seen noticeable benefits to vegetable performance as a result of using Bridgeway, and with its proven effects in stress situations, it will come into its own if we have a drought.”
Licensed for use on an array of both non-organic and organic vegetable crops, Bridgeway is an amino acid biostimulant designed to help crops reach their genetic yield potential and reduce the impact of abiotic stress by improving plant health.
Feeding a crop Bridgeway guarantees the supply of amino acids for building protein, which is critical for plant health. Under ideal conditions, plants synthesise all 18 L-amino acids, using carbon and oxygen in the air, hydrogen from water and nitrogen from the soil. This is what makes soil quality and nutrient density so important to overall plant health.
Where conditions are poor, these raw materials can leach away in the soil or in dry soils, can become inaccessible to the plant. When crops don’t get what they need from their environment, we believe working with biostimulants is the best way to break the cycle. A biostimulant acts like a supplement until the crop can start production again making them crucial stress-busting tools.
In demonstration trials carried out in 2018 at the Allium and Brassica Centre, Bridgeway-treated Brussel sprout crops not only looked healthier, they also produced an extra 11.8t/ha compared with the untreated. Bridgeway was applied at 2.0 L/ha in June with 6 applications every 4-5 weeks apart.
Brussel sprout biostimulant demo at The Allium and Brassica Centre
Bridgeway increased plant health, increasing disease resistance
Mildew and yellowing of leaves
Healthier plants, with less mildew
Bridgeway treated Brussel sprout plant were longer, with more buttons per stem
Bridgeway increased Brussel sprout yield by +11.8 t/ha
Effect of Bridgeway on Brussel yield (t/ha), plant weight (kg) and button weight (kg) per 5 plants
Tops comparison at harvest
Research carried out by CMI Ltd in 2018 also showed increases in onion yield from Bridgeway applications, with yield increases at every timing compared with untreated crops. Targeting onions at three spray timings delivered the biggest benefit, with a +7.3 t/ha yield advantage over the untreated.
Onion trials conducted by CMI Ltd in 2018
Onion yield increased with all Bridgeway applications
Effect of Bridgeway on Onion yield (t/ha) & g/bulb
Onion margins were increased substantially at every timing
Effect of Bridgeway on Onion yield (t/ha) & margin over input cost (£)
James Rome, agronomist at East of Scotland Growers has also seen the benefits of Bridgeway first-hand. “I first started using Bridgeway last year, initially to help combat plant stress, and where we used it, we saw a significant improvement to crop health.”
To read more about James’ experience with Bridgeway in veg, and to hear from other agronomists, please see our case studies below.