Influence of Biostimulants and Plant Growth Regulators on Physiological and Biochemical Traits in Tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.)

Increasing the yield and quality has been one of the major objectives of scientists working in tomato especially through organic based inputs. Among the various approaches, use of biostimulants and Plant Growth Regulators has been promising in terms of increasing yield and quality in the context of organic farming. Biostimulants are organic compounds composed of peptides, amino acids, polysaccharides, seaweeds, humic acids and phytohormones for immediate uptake and availability within the plant. It also stimulates natural processes to enhance nutrient uptake, tolerance to abiotic stress and crop quality. In order to understand the responses of plants to biostimulants and plant growth regulators in terms of physiological and biochemical changes, the pot culture experiment was conducted in tomato with variety PKM 1. Various components of biostimulants viz., seaweed extract, humic acid, phytohormones were applied as foliar spray at appropriate concentrations in completely randomized block design with four replications. Results revealed that the higher chlorophyll content, soluble protein, NRase activity and shoot length were observed in plants treated with 100 ppm salicylic acid followed by 0.2 per cent humic acid and seaweed- 0.5 per cent Kappaphycus alvarezii. These findings suggest that biostimulants and PGRs can be effectively used to influence the physiological and biochemical traits which would results in better growth and yield.