Improving the growth of oil palm seedlings with biostimulants NEB-26 and NEB-29

Abstract

Biostimulants appear an emerging option to improving seedling growth and development and as a production cost reduction strategy. They are known to stimulate the biological activities of the soil microbes, increase root growth, enhance root nutrient uptake and reduce the need for addi-tional fertilizer application. The study was to evaluate the effect of two biostimulants (NEB-26 and NEB-29) and their combinations with other fertilizer formulations on the growth of oil palm seedling at the nursery. The experiment, conducted at Okyinso near Kade from May 2005 to March 2006, was a randomized complete block design with twelve treatments in three replica-tions. Plant growth parameters such as plant height, butt circumference, frond dry weight, leaf area and leaf area index were measured monthly. The results on the vegetative measurement indicate that a mixture of NEB-26 with NPKMg fertilizer formulation and NEB-29 with NPKMg fertilizer formulation promoted growth of the seedlings better than sole application of NEB-26 and NEB-29 alone.