Improving the Characteristics of Tomato Seedlings by Integrated Application of Humic Acid, Auxin, and Phosphoric Acid

Document Type : Research Article

Authors

1 Soil Science Department, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Zanjan, Zanjan, Iran.

2 Nuclear Agriculture Research School, Nuclear Science and Technology Research Institute, Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, Karaj, Iran.

Abstract

Background and Objectives
The use of growth stimulants and chemical fertilizers in agricultural production has been common for many years, and the number of these compounds is increasing every day. Transparency in costs, efficiency, effects, and how to apply them can encourage farmers to use these compounds. These compounds can be organic, chemical, or hormonal, and accordingly affect one or more plant growth factors. Some of these compounds are applied under specific conditions or by a specific method, and in addition to the plant, they also affect the characteristics of the soil as a growth medium. Therefore, different compounds and their effects on the soil, plant, and final product can be examined to determine the possibility of using the optimal combination to achieve better and more yield and improve soil quality. Accordingly, in this study, the effects of humic acid, phosphoric acid, and indole butyric acid (as a hormone) on tomato plants (Solanum lycopersicum L. cv. 83-20) were investigated.
Methodology
The experimental substrate contained 70% cocopeat and 30% perlite (V/V), and the study was conducted as a completely randomized design with 3 replications. The experimental treatments in this study included: T0- control, T1- humic acid (0.25 g/L), T2- phosphoric acid (0.25 g/L), T3- indole butyric acid dissolved in 0.01 M sodium hydroxide (5 mg/L), T4- humic acid (0.125 g/L) + indole butyric acid (2.5 mg/L), T5- humic acid (0.125 g/L) + phosphoric acid (0.125 g/L), T6- phosphoric acid (0.125 g/L) + indole butyric acid (2.5 mg/L), T7- humic acid (0.125 g/L) + phosphoric acid (0.125 g/L) + indole butyric acid (2.5 mg/L). The height, fresh and dry weights of shoot, fresh and dry weights of root, volume of root, number of leaves, diameter of stem, as well as the plant characteristics such as relative water content (RWC), chlorophyll concentration, and phosphorus percentage were measured.
Results
By statistical analysis of the measured data, it was found that the compounds used had significant effects on the measured plant parameters. The results showed that applying the aforementioned compounds in this experiment significantly increased the height of tomato plants. In a way, T7 had the greatest effect and the height of the plant in this treatment reached 9.9 cm. This was while in the control treatment, the height of the plant was measured as 4.04 cm and no significant differences were observed between the treatments of T2, T3, T4, T5, and T6. Although all applied compounds increased the stem diameter and the maximum increase was in the T7 with 2.49 mm and the lowest was in the control treatment with 0.73 mm. The results also showed that the highest fresh and dry weights of plant root (1.03 and 0.10 g, respectively) were observed in the T7, which was a combination of auxin hormone + humic acid + phosphoric acid. In addition, the fresh weight of the aerial parts of tomato plants was the highest with T7, which increased about 6 times compared to the control treatment. While the lowest fresh and dry weights of plant root (0.15 and 0.02 g, respectively) were measured in the control treatment. The results showed that the treatments had a significant effect on the dry weight of the aerial parts, so that the highest dry weight of the aerial parts (0.25 g) was observed in the T7 and the lowest (0.04 g) was in the control treatment. The highest amount of chlorophyll concentration (34.46 mg/100 g of fresh weight) was measured in the T7 and the lowest of that (7.23 mg/100 g of fresh weight) was in the control treatment. However, no significant differences were observed between the treatments of T5, T6, and T7 (Figure 8). Also, the highest amount of phosphorus concentrations in the plant root and shoot were in the T7 and T5, respectively. In addition, applying hormones alone (T3) reduced the amount of phosphorus concentration in the plant root.
Conclusion
According to the final results of this study, the integrated treatment of auxin hormone + humic acid + phosphoric acid can be introduced as a useful and effective growth stimulant in tomato plant growth. Furthermore, it seems necessary to investigate more about the effect of this combination on quantity and quality of final product.
Author Contributions
Conceptualization, M.B. and A.H.; methodology, M.B. and M.N.H.; software, M.N.H; validation, M.N.H.; formal analysis, M.B. and M.N.H.; investigation, M.B., M.N.H., and A.H.; resources, M.N.H. and A.H.; data curation, M.B. and M.N.H.; writing—original draft preparation, M.N.H. and A.H.; writing–review and editing, M.N.H. and A.H.; visualization, M.N.H.; supervision, A.H.; project administration, A.H.; funding acquisition, A.H. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.
Data Availability Statement
Data is available on reasonable request from the authors.
Acknowledgements
This paper is published as a part of a Master's thesis supported by the Vice Chancellor for Research and Technology of the University of Zanjan, Zanjan, Iran. The authors are thankful to the University of Zanjan for financial supports.
 
Conflict of interest
The authors declare no conflict of interest.
 
Ethical considerations
The authors avoided data fabrication, falsification, plagiarism, and misconduct.

Keywords

Main Subjects

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Journal of Soil and Plant Science
Volume 35, Issue 1
June 2025
Pages 51-65

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