Modern agriculture needs to review and broaden its practices and business models, by integrating opportunities coming from different adjacent sectors and value chains, including the bio-based industry, in a fully circular economy strategy. Searching for new tools and technologies to increase crop productivity under optimal and sub-optimal conditions and to improve resources use efficiency is crucial to ensure food security while preserving soil quality, microbial biodiversity, and providing business opportunities for farmers. Biostimulants based on microorganisms or organic substances obtained from renewable materials represent a sustainable, efficient technology or complement to synthetic counterparts, to improve nutrient use efficiency and secure crop yield stability. Under the new European Union Regulation 2019/1009, plant biostimulants were defined based on four agricultural functional claims as follows: Plant biostimulants are products that stimulate plant nutrition processes independently of the product's nutrient content with the sole aim of improving one or more of the following characteristics of the plant and/or the plant rhizosphere: 1) nutrient use efficiency, 2) tolerance resistance to (a)biotic stress, 3) quality characteristics or 4) availability of confined nutrients in the soil or rhizosphere’. Many diverse natural substances and chemical derivatives of natural or synthetic compounds, as well as beneficial microorganisms, are cataloged as plant biostimulants including i) humic substances, ii) plant or animal-based protein hydrolysates, iii) macro and micro-algal extracts, iv) silicon, v) arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) and vi) plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) belonging to the Azotobacter, Azospirillum and Rhizobium genera.

Over the past decade, interest in plant biostimulants has been on the rise, compelled by the growing interest of researchers, extension specialists, private industries, and farmers in integrating these products in the array of environmentally friendly tools to secure improved crop performance, nutrient efficiency, product quality, and yield stability. Plant biostimulants include diverse organic and inorganic substances, natural compounds, and/or beneficial microorganisms such as humic acids, protein hydrolysates, seaweed and plant extracts, silicon, endophytic fungi like mycorrhizal fungi, and plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria belonging to the genera Azospirillum, Azotobacter, and Rhizobium. Other substances (e.g., chitosan and other biopolymers and inorganic compounds) can have biostimulant properties, but their classification within the group of biostimulants is still under consideration. Plant biostimulants are usually applied to high-value crops, mainly greenhouse crops, fruit trees and vines, open-field crops, flowers, and ornamentals to sustainably increase yield and product quality. The global biostimulant market is currently estimated at about $2.0 billion and is expected to reach $3.0 billion by 2021 at an annual growth rate of 13%. A growing interest in plant biostimulants from industries and scientists was demonstrated by the high number of published peer-reviewed articles, conferences, workshops, and symposia in the past ten years. This book compiles several original research articles, technology reports, methods, opinions, perspectives, and invited reviews and mini reviews dissecting the biostimulatory action of these natural compounds and substances and beneficial microorganisms on crops grown under optimal and suboptimal growing conditions (e.g., salinity, drought, nutrient deficiency and toxicity, heavy metal contaminations, waterlogging, and adverse soil pH conditions). Also included are contributions dealing with the effect as well as the molecular and physiological mechanisms of plant biostimulants on nutrient efficiency, product quality, and modulation of the microbial population both quantitatively and qualitatively. In addition, identification and understanding of the optimal method, time, rate of application and phenological stage for improving plant performance and resilience to stress as well as the best combinations of plant species/cultivar × environment × management practices are also reported. We strongly believe that high standard reflected in this compilation on the principles and practices of plant biostimulants will foster knowledge transfer among scientific communities, industries, and agronomists, and will enable a better understanding of the mode of action and application procedures of biostimulants in different cropping systems.

Biostimulants stimulate natural processes in crops to enhance nutrient uptake, nutrient use efficiency (NUE), resistance to abiotic stress and quality traits. This collection reviews key advances in understanding and using biostimulants.

Biostimulants are synthetic or natural substances that can be used in soil, seeds and plants, and which influence tolerance towards abiotic stress, uptake of nutrients and nutrient efficiency. Seaweed extracts, helpful fungi and bacteria, humic acids, and liquid manure composting are some of the several types of biostimulants. They are increasingly being used in sustainable agricultural practices. These practices strive to strike a balance between the need to produce food and preserving the ecological system. The three primary goals of sustainable agriculture are maintaining environmental health, ensuring economic profitability, and guaranteeing social and economic equity. Biostimulants are compatible with the most progressive farming practices utilized in integrated crop management. They act as soil conditioners and assist the plants in securing nutrients, increasing crop productivity, and repelling pests. This book aims to shed light on the use of biostimulants in sustainable agriculture and crop production. It presents researches and studies performed by experts across the globe. This book will prove immensely beneficial to professionals and students involved in this area of agriculture science.

Sustainable agriculture refers to a type of farming practice that addresses the needs of present and future generations, while ensuring profitability, environmental health, and social and economic equity. It incorporates a wide range of eco-friendly methods of farming that allow the production of crops or livestock without causing any damage to human or natural systems. Some of the common sustainable agriculture practices include multiple cropping, permaculture, mixed farming, agroforestry, crop rotation, and use of plant biostimulants. In agriculture, biostimulant refers to any substance or a mixture of substances having natural or microbial origin, which helps to improve the condition of crops. The use of biostimulants has shown to stimulate germination, seeding, plant growth, and crop productivity. This book provides comprehensive insights on sustainable agriculture and the application of microorganisms as biostimulants. A number of latest researches have been included to keep the readers updated with the global concepts in this area of study. Students, researchers, experts, and all interested in sustainable agriculture will benefit alike from this book.

"Agricultural biostimulants are a group of substances or microorganisms that are applied to plants or soils to improve crop vigour, yields, quality and tolerance of abiotic stresses. This book reviews their role in crop production and agricultural sustainability"--

New and Future Developments in Microbial Biotechnology and Bioengineering: Sustainable Agriculture: Revitalization through Organic Products provides a comprehensive overview of different organic products which work as plant biostimulants, i.e., protein hydrolysates, chitosan, microbial derived exopolysaccharides, pectin, nanoparticles, etc. In addition, detailed insights in their mechanisms for plant growth promotion and stress alleviation are covered. This volume further discusses the extraction and formulation of organic products for use in sustainable agriculture. The application of microbial derived secondary metabolites in crop protection is also extensively covered. This book will be ideal for agrochemists, biotechnologists, biochemists, industrialists, researchers and scientists working on organic farming. - Comprises information on the various types of organic products and their applications in agriculture - Gives an insightful perspective on mechanisms of different organic products involved in plant growth promotion and stress management - Provides resourceful material for new ideas to develop organic formulations for agricultural practices

Today, the agriculture industry is confronted with simultaneous issues of how to fully embrace mass production of safer food in terms of both quality and quantity. Most industries are concerned with avoiding significant levels of soil pollution and environmental threats as a result of the excessive and harmful use of synthetic products on crops. Therefore, there is a need to adopt sustainable technological innovations that can ensure the sustainability of agricultural production systems. Microbial Biostimulants for Sustainable Agriculture and Environmental Bioremediation discusses the benefits, challenges, and practical applications of eco-friendly biotechnological techniques using biostimulants derived from beneficial microorganisms. The chapters cover the use of these organisms to increase crop production, enhance soil fertility and maintain soil health, create crop and plant tolerance to different abiotic stressors, release required nutrients to the soil, increase resistance to plant pathogens/pests, improve nutrient use efficiency of crops, and rejuvenate polluted environments. FEATURES Explores the physiological, morpho-anatomical, and biochemical molecular plant rejoinders involved in stimulating crop productivity Provides information on the physiological, cellular, and molecular modes of action underlying microbial biostimulant interfaces Summarizes methods and approaches for executing microbial stimulant technology Outlines numerous environmental management and remediation strategies This book is an ideal resource for researchers, engineers, and academics working in soil science, crop science, water remediation, microbiology, and biotechnology.

This volume reviews achievements in bioprocess and biosystems engineering, biosynthesis, food, agriculture, and biotechnology-related issues. Considering the fact that biological alternatives can replace harmful chemical products in order to maintain ecosystems for a sustainable future, the book covers the role of biotechnology in industrial products, environmental remediation, and agriculture biotechnology, with updated research and case studies.