The Role of Biostimulants in Horticultural Crop Production: Current Advances and Challenges
A special issue of Agronomy (ISSN 2073-4395). This special issue belongs to the section "Horticultural and Floricultural Crops".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 25 December 2025 | Viewed by 17
Special Issue Editor
Interests: abiotic stress tolerance; drought; salinity; potassium transport; arbuscular mycorrhizal symbiosis; science communication
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Biostimulants, defined as natural substances that enhance plant nutrition, stress tolerance, and growth without acting as fertilizers or pesticides, have become critical tools in modern agriculture as they address pressing challenges such as soil degradation, climate-related abiotic stresses, and the demand for sustainable high-yield practices. By stimulating natural plant processes—including nutrient uptake, enzyme activity, and hormonal regulation—biostimulants improve crop quality, resilience, and productivity while reducing reliance on chemical inputs.
The need for biostimulants arises from their ability to mitigate stressors like drought, salinity, and extreme temperatures, which increasingly threaten global food security. Key types include humic and fulvic acids (which enhance soil structure and nutrient availability), seaweed extracts (rich in phytohormones and polysaccharides), amino acids (which boost chlorophyll synthesis), and microbial formulations (e.g., mycorrhizae and growth-promoting bacteria). These products offer multifaceted advantages—improved nutrient efficiency, stronger root systems, and enhanced resistance to biotic and abiotic stresses.
Despite their benefits, research on combined applications of different biostimulants remains limited. Early evidence suggests potential synergies—such as pairing humic acids with microbial consortia to amplify nutrient mobilization—but interactions may also be neutral or antagonistic. Standardized protocols for timing, dosage, and compatibility are lacking, hindering optimization. Current studies emphasize single-product effects, leaving gaps in understanding on how integrated formulations influence crop physiology under diverse conditions. Addressing these knowledge gaps is vital to unlocking the full potential of biostimulants in achieving sustainable horticultural production.
This Special Issue focuses on addressing the challenges and potential benefits of using biostimulants in horticultural crop production. It aims to analyze their formulation, optimal application timing, and modes of action to maximize their effectiveness, deepen knowledge about their functionality, and support the development of more sustainable and productive agricultural systems.
We invite submissions of original research, review articles, mini-reviews, and methods articles in these areas.
Dr. Rosa Porcel
Guest Editor
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Agronomy is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- biostimulants
- abiotic stress
- biotic stress
- beneficial microorganism
- mycorrhizal fungi
- PGPR
- inorganic compounds
- seaweed extracts
- chitin and chitosan derivatives
- humic and fulvic acids
- protein hydrolysates
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