Marianne Weisser1 and Tony Arioli1
Seasol International, Bayswater, Victoria, Australia
Productive soils rely on soil ecosystem processes and the nitrogen and carbon cycles being synchronized. However, in depleted soils that are farmed intensely with limited crop diversity, the natural ecosystem processes become disconnected. Similarly, a dependency upon inorganic fertilizer eventually results in fragmented biological, plant, soil and microbe ecosystems. New innovations are needed to boost, connect and regenerate the soil processes for better agricultural productivity and longer-term soil fertility. Our hypothesis is that the combination of seaweed extract, amino acids and complex carbon-rich humate fractions are key ingredients for simultaneously boosting soil biology and increasing crop productivity. A product was made from these ingredients called Seasol Trilogy 631. The product was applied to tomato plants potted in fertilized soil, grown in a greenhouse and arranged in a replicated trial design. The crop was tested for (i) plant physiology (such as root biomass, flower timing, flower number, fruit set and fruit number, and leaf SPAD) (ii) crop productivity (harvest yield, fruit weight and number per plant), (iii) fruit quality (size, count, brix) and (iv) soil properties (total bacteria and fungi counts). We present results that the product was successful in simultaneously enhancing tomato plant physiology and productivity while improving soil biology.