ZDC^® Kelpower: Field application effect – Promote growth and increase yield

Since being launched in 2023, the key product Kelpower of ZDC’s marine-based fertilizer, has been sold and applied widely in Chinese market and shows satisfactory results in its application to various high value crops such as tomato, cucumber, chili, eggplant, winter date, grape and strawberry. Derived from the Australian-source kelp ---- Durvillaea potatorum, Kelpower is an innovative biostimulant, which in agricultural application can significantly improve productivity, promote crop growth, improve soil condition and enhance plant resistance to biotic and abiotic stress. 

Durvillaea potatorum is distributed on the eastern, southern and western coast of Tasmania as well as the southeastern part of Australia. Growing all year round under low-temperature and poor-light environment and enduring strong and frequent waves, Durvillaea potatorum therefore has thick and solid vegetative tissue, and is rich in medium and trace elements and plant endogenous hormones as well.

ZDC utilizes its independently developed compound brown seaweed lyase to degrade and extract the raw material Durvillaea potatorum via its proprietary Secondary-enzyme-hydrolysis process. Hence, the resultant seaweed extract has a high stability and superior compatibility while retaining the bioactive substances in the raw material such as alginic oligosaccharide, auxin, cytokinin, phenolic substance, betaine and mannitol, etc.

This article describes the application and effect of Kelpower on tomato and grape.

1. Kelpower on Tomato 

    Time of test: Mar. 02, 2024

    Location of test: Mingbai Village, Caoba Town, Mengzi City, Yunnan Province

    Test crop: Tomato -13 days after transplanting

    Experimental design: Investigate by Systematic sampling method. Set 5 repeats of both treated and untreated check. 

10 days after application of Kelpower, measure and take average of following metrics: plant height, stem diameter, leaf number, leaf width of the 7^th leaf, crown width, lateral bud number, flower number of first inflorescence and flower number of second inflorescence.

Picture 1   Experimental Field Condition Before Application of Kelpower 

Picture 1 shows consistent growth of tomato seedlings before applying Kelpower. During the experiment, there was a clear weather with the temperature inside the greenhouse of 16℃.

Picture 2   Measure the metrics of tomato above ground part 10 days after applying Kelpower 

Chart 1 Comparison of tomato’s growth condition between the Treated and UTC

Before applying Kelpower, there is no significant difference between the tomato seedlings in the treated area and the untreated area. After application, the data of plant height, stem diameter, leaf number, leaf width of the 7^th leaf, crown width, lateral bud number, flower number of first inflorescence and second inflorescence of the Kelpower treated tomato are all higher than that of the UTC.

The plant height, stem diameter, leaf number, leaf width of the 7^th leaf, and crown width of Kelpower treated tomato are all significantly increased compared to UTC, which shows that the growth of the treated crop is vigorous. 

The crown width also represents the distance plant roots can extend in all directions. The crown width of Kelpower treated is 3.36cm higher than that of UTC, which indicates a stronger root system.

The Kelpower treated tomato has 2.2 more lateral buds on average than the UTC, and more flowers in both first and second inflorescence, which shows better flower bud differentiation.

The test results indicate that, in the early growing stage of tomato seedlings, applying Kelpower in conjunction with regular fertilizers can effectively improve crop growth conditions, enhance root system development, promote and strengthen seedlings.

2. Kelpower on grape 

    Time of test: March, 2024

    Location of test: Honghe State, Yunnan Province

    Test crop: 'Shine Muscat' grape in greenhouse

    Experimental design: 3 treated groups and 3 untreated check groups. 

    1^st application of Kelpower on Mar. 09, 2024. 1^st visit on Mar. 15, 2nd visit on Apr. 7. 

Picture 3. Measure the data of grape leaves on Mar. 15, 2024. 

Data shows that the leaf area of Kelpower treated grape increases faster than that of UTC, and the treated grape leaves are thicker than UTC. Thus, Kelpower promotes the whole plant growing faster without overgrowth or excessive stretch.

Picture 4.  28 days after 1^st application, comparison of grapefruits between Kelpower treated and UTC 

Measure the diameter of fruits on cluster top and bottom respectively. 

Average increase rate of fruit diameter = (average diameter after application – average diameter before application) / average diameter before application

Chart 2.   Comparison of increase rate of average fruit diameter between Kelpower treated and UTC

After 4 times of application of Kelpower, the average increase rate of the diameter of fruit on cluster top is 8.88% higher than that of UTC; the average increase rate of the diameter of fruit on cluster bottom is 10.25% higher than that of UTC. So Kelpower increases the fruit diameter growth rate of grapes on both cluster top and bottom, which indicates that Kelpower can significantly promote the growth of grapefruit. 

Chart 2 shows that the growth data curves of Kelpower treated grape are highly overlapping, average fruit diameter of clusters top and bottom remains largely consistent. It shows that Kelpower can promote grape growth evenly and increase fruit quality. 

The experimental results show that in the young grape fruit stage, applying Kelpower combined with conventional fertilizer can enhance leaf growth, promote photosynthesis, and accelerate the accumulation rate of dry matter, thereby helping fruit expansion, and improving grape quality and yield.

In conclusion, Kelpower can significantly enhance crop growth, promote root development, strengthen seedlings, and increase fruit expansion. Guided by the vision of ″To promote highly efficient agriculture and food safety around the world″, ZDC is committed to bringing our superior products like Kelpower to the global market.

For more information of ZDC, please visit: www.zdcagri.com

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