Utilizing Biostimulator Grow–B for Increasing Tobacco Seeds Germination, Biometric Indicators of Seedling and Quality of Cured Tobacco

Abstract

In 2020–2021, in the central zone of the Krasnodar Territory, a study was conducted on the effectiveness of a biostimulator based on triterpene acids Grow–B on tobacco of the promising variety Sheptalsky 63. According to the results of the use of a growth-stimulating agent with a fungicidal effect in laboratory conditions, it was found that pre-sowing soaking of tobacco seeds at a concentration of 0.05% for 6 hours increased the weight of tobacco seedlings by 43%. Sowing of treated tobacco seeds in a greenhouse together with additional double treatment of seedlings in the development phases “ears” and “fit for planting” with a solution of the biostimulator Grow–B in a concentration of 0.05% increased the number of leaves on plants by 18, the length of seedlings from the root neck to the point of growth – by 37, to the end of the elongated leaves – by 24, the diameter of the stem is by 30, the crude mass of the aboveground part and the root system is by 96 and 95%, respectively. The yield of standard seedlings per unit of greenhouse area increased by 29%. The survival rate of plants in the field reached 98, their height increased by 12 by the end of the harvesting period, the area of tobacco leaves of the middle tier – by 28, yield – by 37% compared with the control. Pre-sowing soaking of seeds and seedling treatment with the Grow–B biostimulator increased the amount of nicotine in tobacco raw materials by 34, carbohydrates by 68, and reduced the amount of proteins by 13%. The number of Schmuck (carbohydrate-protein ratio characterizing the quality of raw materials) increased by 89% against the background of a biostimulator.