Rootsure Max for Maize
An insurance policy for your crop
Soil health is the foundation on which profitable and productive agricultural systems are built. This being said, soil is a critical and complex ecosystem where living microorganisms and plant roots work to bind mineral particles and organic matter together to form a dynamic structure that regulate water, air, and nutrients, and thus the way in which soil is managed can work to improve or degrade this resource.
Of particular interest is how soil organisms aid in agricultural systems through their biological control. At Damara Bio-Agri, we supply a product called Rootsure Max for Maize. This product is a biological seed treatment composed of two distinctly unique products, SabrEx and Digital. SabrEx is an endophytic Trichoderma based powdered product consisting of three maize specific strains of Trichoderma spp (endophytic root inoculant). Digital is a kelp-based product (Ascophyllum nodosum) extract plus metabolites of Trichoderma spp. Ultimately, the combination is the solution.
This raises the question, “What is Trichoderma, and why is Rootsure MAX different?”.
Respectively speaking, Trichoderma’s can best be described as a genus of fungi with several strains in which the majority are opportunistic plant symbionts, meaning they tend to have mutual relationships with several plant species. What makes a specific strain of Trichoderma inherently unique in a particular circumstance is the crop specificness of that strain. Thus, crop specific strains of Trichoderma will have more effect on the crop as opposed to general applications of Trichoderma, which will have more benefit to that crop thus translating to a healthier crop.
This is why Rootsure MAX for Maize is so unique. SabrEx contains three different strains of endophytic Trichoderma, all specific and applicable to maize. The advantages of using SabrEx relates specifically to the quick and effective nature of Trichoderma working to inoculate the seed within 16 to 48 hours after application and lasting the lifecycle of the crop. In doing so, the microbes in the soil produce signaling molecules that upregulate photosynthesis, keeping the plant in an optimal state of photosynthesis so as to feed carbon to the soil microbes, which in turn protect and nourish the plant. As well as this, the endophytic Trichoderma colonizes the plants roots, activating induced stress resistance through the plants genetics and mitigating the effects of adverse environmental and soil conditions resulting in protection against pathogens and disease suppression.
The second component of Rootsure Max, namely, Digital, is an Ascophyllum nodosum kelp with metabolites of Trichoderma spp. The application of Digital has its own unique advantages. The non-living metabolite of Digital is not sensitive to chemicals and offers an instant response in signaling growth and disease suppression. As a result, the hormonal changes induce an increase in root length and biomass as well as shoot development and vegetative growth. What becomes clear in this case is that when your plant is in a heightened state of production, that being it is performing and photosynthesizing optimally, it is already at a heightened state of disease suppression. However, the application of Digital which includes anti-microbial metabolites also aids in increasing stress tolerance further. Furthermore, the chelating sugars in the kelp improve nutrient availability and uptake.
The combination of SabrEx and Digital is most certainly the solution, as Rootsure MAX for Maize provides the most elusive relationship in promoting plant growth and superiority, supporting the maize plant throughout its life-cycle in terms of pathogen suppression and growth promotion. Ultimately, Rootsure Max supplies the soil with the coach to call the best possible microbes in the soil including streptomyces, azospirillum, bacillus and mycorrhizae all to perform specific functions such as nitrogen fixation, phosphate solubilization, fungicidal, insecticidal, and bactericidal properties.
It is important to note that Rootsure Max for Maize is a seed treatment that can only be applied to maize seed prior to planting. It is an insurance policy in that Trichoderma products work best under stressed conditions.
