Syngenta's plant growth regulator Actigard got approval in Canada

Syngenta Crop Protection Canada has picked up registration for a growth regulator that also works to boost natural defences against bacteria and mould infections in plants such as tomatoes and tobacco.

The company on Dec. 15 announced approval for Actigard, a plant growth regulator billed as offering protection against bacterial speck and bacterial spot in tomatoes, and against blue mould in tobacco.

Actigard's active ingredient, acibenzolar-S-methyl, mimics the natural systemic activated resistance (SAR) response found in many plants, Syngenta said in a release. The mode of action belongs to a category dubbed "Host Plant Defense Induction: Group P1."

"Actigard acts similar to a vaccine, triggering natural defence mechanisms within the plant, preparing the plant to protect itself against infection," Fernando Olea, fungicide and insecticide brand manager with Syngenta's Guelph-based Canadian arm, said in the release.

Actigard, he said, should be used as a preventive treatment "in a co-ordinated approach with other fungicides."

The product is expected to be available for use across Canada for the 2011 growing season, the company said.