article · Ciência e Agrotecnologia
Dittrichia viscosa, a Mediterranean plant species, shows potential as a natural agricultural biostimulant. An evaluation of its methanolic and ethanolic extracts revealed distinct chemical compositions and functional benefits. Methanolic extracts possessed higher concentrations of polyphenols, flavonoids, and tannins, whilst ethanolic extracts displayed stronger antioxidant activity in laboratory assays. When tested on crops, methanolic extracts notably improved root length in both Vicia faba and Citrus clementina seedlings at a concentration of 0.05 mg/mL, whereas ethanolic extracts displayed inhibitory effects at higher doses. Further greenhouse trials demonstrated that treating Vicia faba with methanolic extract led to significant gains in seed number, seed weight, seed sac size, and stem dimensions compared to controls and ethanol treatments. These results highlight the efficacy of methanolic preparations of the plant for crop enhancement.
Modern agriculture increasingly seeks natural, plant-derived products to support crop growth and reduce reliance on synthetic chemicals. Demonstrating that crude extracts from a common ruderal plant can stimulate crop root systems and improve harvest metrics offers a pathway towards more sustainable farming inputs and eco-friendly crop management strategies.
This research provides applied evidence for developing natural biostimulant formulations for agricultural use, specifically targeting broad bean and clementine producers. Because the efficacy has been demonstrated in laboratory root assays and greenhouse trials, the work sits at an applied, mid-stage testing level. Agrochemical developers or biostimulant manufacturers would need to validate field efficacy, establish scalable extraction methods, and assess regulatory compliance before commercial deployment.
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ABSTRACT Dittrichia viscosa (L.) Greuter, a Mediterranean ruderal species, exhibits dual agro-biochemical roles as both a biostimulant and allelopathic agent. This study evaluated methanolic and ethanolic extracts for phytochemical content, antioxidant activity, and biostimulant efficacy on Vicia faba and Citrus clementina. Methanolic extracts contained significantly higher polyphenols (215.8 ± 22.7 mg GAE/g), flavonoids (112.0 ± 19.0 mg QE/g), and tannins (52.9 ± 2.0 mg/g) compared to ethanolic extracts (110.9 ± 17.6 mg GAE/g, 16.0 ± 3.1 mg QE/g, 11.2 ± 1.0 mg/g). Despite this, ethanolic extracts exhibited stronger antioxidant scavenging, with lower IC50 values in DPPH (0.49 ± 0.14 mg/mL) and ABTS (0.33 ± 0.22 mg/mL) assays than methanolic extracts (0.72 ± 0.05 and 0.93 ± 0.12 mg/mL, respectively). Hydroponic root assays demonstrated methanolic extracts enhanced Vicia faba root length significantly at 0.05 mg/mL (5.85 ± 1.32 cm) and Citrus clementina roots at 0.05 mg/mL (2.73 ± 0.38 cm), outperforming ethanolic extracts which showed inhibitory effects at higher doses. In vivo greenhouse experiments confirmed methanolic extract treatments increased Vicia faba seed number and weight significantly (p < 0.001), alongside larger seed sacs and stem sizes compared to controls and ethanol treatments. These findings validate D. viscosa as a promising natural bio-stimulant with antioxidant synergy for sustainable agriculture.
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DOI: 10.1590/1413-7054202549006925
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