Quality and Shelf-Life of Onion Bulbs Influenced by Biostimulants

Abstract

Onion (Allium cepa L) yield and postharvest shelf-life have not been meeting their potentials even when recommended amounts of mineral fertilizers are applied during production. Biostimulants have been proposed as alternatives to mineral fertilizers to improve crop production within sustainable agriculture systems. The objective of this study was to assess the effects of the commercially available biostimulants Humic Total, Amino Total, Seamino Pro, CaBoron, and Elga 600 on yield, bulb quality, and storage ability of onion, cv. Giza 20, during the cropping seasons in 2014 and 2015. The biostimulants significantly increased total yield and bulb weight and decreased cull yield compared to the control. The best treatments were Humic Total, Amino Total, and CaBoron. Control plants had bulb total soluble solids and firmness that were not different from other treatments. The lowest decay rates were from plants receiving Amino Total and CaBoron and the control had the highest bulb weight loss. Onion growth, yield, quality, and storage ability may be improved with application of biostimulants.