DOI: https://doi.org/10.5513/JCEA01/27.2.4831
Original scientific paper
Mitigating selective herbicide stress in maize (Zea mays L.) with biostimulant intervention
2026, 27 (2) p. 391-400
Saeed Reza YAGHOOBI, Ali MOKHTASSI-BIDGOLI, Saba HAJHEIDARI
Abstract
Biostimulants, integral to organic crop management, offer a sustainable approach to enhancing plant growth and resilience. Integrating biostimulants with selective herbicides may reduce application costs while mitigating herbicide-related stress. This study investigates the combined effects of maize-selective herbicide (mesotrione + nicosulfuron at 0, 105, 157.5, 210, and 315 g active ingredient (a.i.) per hectare) with various biostimulants amino acid fertilizers (1 and 3 g/L), seaweed extracts (4 and 12 mL/L), potassium chloride (2 and 6 g/L), and a mixture of potassium chloride (2 g/L) + amino acid (1 mL/L) compared to a control with no fertilizer on maize and redroot pigweed (Amaranthus retroflexus). Biostimulant addition, particularly amino acids or potassium chloride at 105 g/ha a.i., significantly improved maize total dry matter, leaf area, and root volume. Moreover, incorporating seaweed extract into the herbicide mixture significantly enhanced chlorophyll a and b and carotenoid levels in maize. Notably, seaweed treatments raised the maize mortality ED₅₀ from 223.5 g/ha a.i. (control) to 448.8 and 579.6 g/ha a.i., indicating increased herbicide tolerance. Conversely, biostimulant addition had a minimal impact on redroot pigweed mortality. These findings suggest that combining biostimulants with herbicides can improve maize tolerance without reducing weed control efficacy.
Keywords
eco-friendly farming practices, fertilizer, herbicide tolerance, weed management
Download Find similar journal articles