Fungal endophytes for enhanced nutrient uptake and crop resilience

Overview

Fungit Biosolutions harnesses the power of endophytic fungi to significantly boost nutrient uptake and improve crop resilience. These fungal endophytes colonize plant tissues, creating a symbiotic relationship that enhances plant health through the secretion of hydrolytic enzymes, organic acids, and siderophores. These secretions mobilize and chelate essential minerals like phosphorus and iron, making them more bioavailable to the plant. The solution is versatile, with applications in seed coating, fertigation, and potentially foliar sprays, making it adaptable to various cropping systems. Proven in trials to increase resilience against abiotic and biotic stresses, this solution supports sustainable agriculture by improving nutrient uptake even in low-fertilizer conditions.

Technical specifications

• Application Methods: Seed coating, fertigation, seedling soaking, and potential foliar sprays
• Trial Results: Demonstrated increased resilience under drought, salinity, and reduced fertilizer conditions
• Performance Metrics: Increases dry biomass by 26%, root dry weight by 21%, and reduces Blossom-End Rot by 77% in tomatoes
• Efficiency Gains: Enhances nutrient use efficiency, agronomic efficiency for iron and phosphate
• Future Validation: Ongoing trials on phosphorus uptake efficiency in lettuce under P-deficient conditions

Technology readiness level

The technology is at TRL 7, with greenhouse trials successfully validating its effectiveness. Further trials are planned to explore the impact of phosphorus deficiency on lettuce growth, with potential scaling for open-field applications.