All plants produce numerous chemical compounds that benefit them in some way. By extracting these compounds from plant materials we can use them to promote stronger growth, protection from pests, pathogens and environmental stress, producing better yields of quality crops.
Biostimulants are not fertilisers, although they can be used to reduce fertiliser usage. Unlike fertilisers, biostimulants do not get incorporated into plant tissue and can produce beneficial effects at far lower concentrations. Biostimulants act on the energy of the plant, enabling it to carry on growing when it would otherwise have to divert all its energy to protecting itself from drought, flood, pests, excessive UV light levels, oxidative stress and other biotic and abiotic stresses.
The result is a stronger, healthier plant, producing a higher yield and a better overall standard of crop quality. For perennial plants the effects can be cumulative and benefits build year upon year.

Our proprietary mixtures of plant extracts can be more potent when the various active ingredients have been isolated, concentrated and made more readily available to the plant by rendering them soluble in water. EcoStim biostimulant products are fully soluble in water and are effective at application rates of just a few litres, or kilos per hectare. They can be applied by any spray, fertigation or drip-line method directly to the plant as a foliar feed, or to the soil, where they support beneficial microorganisms.

(1). They provide the plant with extra energy.
(2). They minimise the effects of oxidative stress by neutralising the harmful oxygen radicles that form as a by-product of photosynthesis, or whenever the plant is exposed to strong sunlight.
(3). They enable the plant to continue growing while it deals with the many environmental stresses that a typical growing season can inflict.
(4). They fortify the plant to resist and recover from predation by pests.
(5). They help the plant to resist and recover from attacks by fungal and bacterial pathogens.
(6). They produce stronger, healthier plants and can significantly increase crop yields.
(7). They reduce the chance of crop failures in adverse conditions.

Biostimulants can work on any species of plant, but we optimise their properties to suit particular plant types and so offer a number of specific formulations that between them cover the whole range of possible crop applications. The formulations are all biodegradable and meet the requirements for organic crop accreditation. The components do not build up in the soil as a result of continued use. The taste, brix value (sugar content) and shelf life of fruit and vegetables has been shown to be improved by biostimulant use. Other reported benefits are early cropping and a significant reduction in wastage.

This largely depends on the amount of stress that your crop typically faces in a growing season. There are few ideal growing days and, as many crops are not native, or acclimatised, to where they are being grown stresses of some kind are inevitable. Generally speaking the more stress your crop is currently facing and the greater the increase in yield you can hope to achieve. It is clear that every growing environment is stressful, although there are different types of stress in different environments their effects on plants however tends to be similar. Stress causes a plant to divert energy from growing to producing protective compounds to fight the stress. This reduces crop yields. Increased yields of 20% to 60% are not uncommon, but yield increases of over 100% have also been achieved. The individual size, taste, sugar content, colour and storage life of harvested crops can also be enhanced by the use of our biostimulants.

All the ingredients in EcoStim biostimulants are organic plant products and are fully biodegradable. The products meet the requirements for organic accreditation.

All EcoStim products come with user friendly instructions on how to use. A typical treatment regime would be to make an initial application early in the season as growth is commencing. A second application would then be made two weeks later, followed by further applications at monthly intervals until flowering or other indications of maturity occur. Five or six specific applications in a season would be typical, or you can use a metered fertigation system. Perennial plants may require fewer treatments in subsequent years because the effects produced by biostimulants tend to be cumulative and plant health and vigour can continue to improve year on year.

This depends largely on the prevailing condition of the soil, but biostimulants can reduce the need for fertilisers. Whatever your fertiliser regime has been in previous years we suggest halving the amount when you first commence biostimulant usage and base your regime for future years on the first season’s results. All NPK fertilisers are compatible with EcoStim Biostimulants, as are most other fertiliser products.

We try to make our product labelling self-explanatory when it comes to the types of crop on which they are designed to be used, however no EcoStim product will do harm if applied to a species for which it was not intended. Our specialists will be pleased to recommend the most suitable product, if it is not clear which one is best suited to your needs. If you have any other questions, then get in touch and ask us!

The powdered solids have a virtually indefinite shelf life if kept cool and dry. The liquid product has a shelf life of at least one year if stored out of the sun and in a ventilated storage area. Once dissolved or diluted with water however the products are designed to be biodegradable and so should be applied to the plants, or the soil, within 12 hours of mixing. For this reason it is recommended only to dissolve or dilute enough product for the immediate use.