Plant growth-promoting composition

Abstract

To provide a plant growth-promoting composition that can promote plant growth more safely and cost-effectively compared to traditional materials.SOLUTION: This plant growth-promoting composition contains, as an active ingredient, at least one selected from the group consisting of onion extracts and onion powder.SELECTED DRAWING: None

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a plant growth promoting composition and a method for promoting plant growth. [Background technology]

[0002] Currently, with the population exploding, producing a sufficient supply of food plants has become a global issue. In addition, desertification of land due to the reduction of green areas is also a problem, and the rise in earth surface temperature due to the global warming phenomenon is also a problem, and environmental problems in plant growth are increasing. In other words, excessive stress on plants due to global environmental factors often causes problems in plant growth.

[0003] There is therefore a demand for technologies that promise more efficient harvesting than before, and biostimulants are attracting attention as a new technology that reduces damage to plants caused by climatic and soil conditions by controlling abiotic stress on plants, thereby providing healthy plants.

[0004] Patent Document 1 discloses a plant stomatal opening promoter containing stevia, and reports that the use of stevia to artificially promote the opening of plant stomatal pores improves heat stress resistance. Patent Document 2 discloses a composition for activating genes that activate the ethylene and / or jasmonic acid signaling system, which comprises a yeast cell wall decomposition product, and reports that providing the yeast cell wall decomposition product to plants activates the expression of plant defensin genes that are involved in the antibacterial properties and disease prevention of the plant body. Patent Document 3 discloses a method for increasing the yield of grains by inoculating a cell wall-containing substance of a methanol-utilizing bacterium into a plant body for cultivating grains. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 6741262 [Patent Document 2] Patent No. 4931388 [Patent Document 3] Patent Publication No. 2019-180361 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] As described above, studies have been conducted so far on improving abiotic stress tolerance and increasing yield of plants by using various materials, but no reports have been published on the use of onion extract or onion powder. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] As a result of extensive investigations, the present inventors have found, by using a highly accurate screening method which they originally developed, that one or more types selected from the group consisting of onion extract and onion powder, among various materials, act as active ingredients for promoting plant growth, and have completed the present invention.

[0008] That is, the present invention is as follows. [1] A plant growth-promoting composition comprising as an active ingredient one or more members selected from the group consisting of onion extract and onion powder. [2] The plant growth-promoting composition described in [1] above, which has one or more plant growth-promoting effects selected from the group consisting of elongation of stems, leaves or roots, increasing the number of leaves, promoting flowering or fruiting, increasing the number of flowers or fruits, increasing plant weight or crop yield, greening, and promoting tillering. [3] The plant growth-promoting composition according to [1] or [2] above, which has an effect of improving abiotic stress resistance. [4] The plant growth-promoting composition described in [3] above, which has an effect of improving stress tolerance against one or more stresses selected from the group consisting of temperature stress, chemical stress, light stress, drought stress, pH stress, salt stress, hypoxic stress, herbicide stress, physical stress, and disease stress. [5] The plant growth-promoting composition according to [3] above, which activates genes in the stress response system. [6] 1. A method for promoting plant growth, comprising applying to a plant, or to soil or culture solution in which a plant grows, a plant growth-promoting composition containing one or more active ingredients selected from the group consisting of onion extract and onion powder. [7] The plant growth-promoting method according to [6] above, wherein the plant growth-promoting composition is used in an amount of 0.001 to 1% by mass relative to the culture solution. Effect of the Invention

[0009] By applying a composition containing one or more components selected from the group consisting of the onion extract and onion powder of the present invention to plants, the growth of plants can be promoted more safely and at lower cost than with conventional materials. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 shows images observing improvement in root establishment of rice when no onion extract or onion powder was added and when 0.36 g (Example 1) of the plant growth-promoting composition containing onion powder was added. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0011] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention (hereinafter, also referred to as "the present embodiment") will be described in detail. Note that the present invention is not limited to the present embodiment, and various modifications can be made within the scope of the gist of the present invention.

[0012] <Plant growth promoting composition> The plant growth promoting composition of the present embodiment contains one or more active ingredients selected from the group consisting of onion extract and onion powder. Onions are plants of the genus Allium in the family Amaryllidaceae. Specifically, Allium cepa can be mentioned. The variety and place of origin of the onion are not particularly limited, and examples thereof include yellow onions, white onions, purple onions (red onions), salad onions, pearl onions, ruby ​​onions, leaf onions, and shallots. More specifically, examples of the onion include Kitawase 3, SN-1, SN-3, SN-3A, Okhotsk 222, Okhotsk 1, Okhotsk 333, Kitamomiji 2000, Super Kitamomiji, H235, Kitahayate 2, Bullet Bear, Arrow Bear, Power Wolf, Brown Bear, Kodiak, Ikol, Vegas, Hayajiro, Sarari, Caloe One, Ezomaru, Sarasara Gold, Quel Gold, Kurenai, R-5, Red Eye Early, Red Eye II, Red Eye, Red One, Yukigeisha 2, Yukigeisha, White These varieties include No. 1, Kitawase No. 1, Pekoros 22 Super, Pekoros F Okhotsk, Kitami Yellow, Sapporo Yellow, Sorachi Yellow, OPP-5, OMP-3, OSP-3, CS3-12, Toyohira, Shippo Wase No. 7, Sonic, Tarzan, Turbo, Uzushio, Advance, Answer, Neo Earth, Power, Keru Tama, and Momiji.

[0013] In this embodiment, the onion extract refers to a product obtained by extracting and concentrating specific components from onions, and the parts used for the extraction are not particularly limited, and examples thereof include leaf blades, leaf sheaths (petioles), bulbs (scale leaves, storage leaves, edible parts), skins (protective leaves), cores, stems (flower stalks and bulb bolts), and roots, which may be used alone or in combination. The onion extract can be obtained, for example, by the method described in <Method for preparing plant growth-promoting composition> described later. The onion powder refers to onions or onion extract obtained by drying and pulverizing it, and is not particularly limited.

[0014] The plant growth-promoting composition in this embodiment is a composition having a plant growth-promoting effect, where the plant growth-promoting effect includes, for example, growth-promoting effects such as elongation of stems, leaves or roots, an increase in the number of leaves, promotion of flowering or fruiting, an increase in the number of flowers or fruits, an increase in plant weight or crop yield, greening, or promotion of tillering.

[0015] More specifically, the case where a plant growth promoting effect is observed means, for example, that the actual weight increase (%) or dry weight increase (%) is increased when the plant growth promoting composition of the present embodiment is used compared to when it is not used. The actual weight increase (%) or dry weight increase (%) when the plant growth promoting composition of the present embodiment is used is preferably increased by 10% or more, more preferably 20%, and even more preferably 30% or more compared to when the plant growth promoting composition of the present embodiment is not used. The case where a plant growth promoting effect is observed includes a case where growth is observed by using the plant growth promoting composition when no growth is observed without the use of the plant growth promoting composition. The above numerical values ​​are average values ​​of the entire plant to which the plant growth promoting composition is applied.

[0016] In addition, the plant growth promoting effect also includes the effect of improving the activity of plants, such as the following. 1) Improved root growth and root survival rate 2) Increased efficiency of nutrient absorption 3) Induction of flower buds, promotion of flowering, and increase in fruit production 4) Accumulation of sugar and other substances 5) Increased water saving effect 6) Callus induction effect 7) Increase in plant size, especially elongation or thickening of above-ground and below-ground parts 8) Repairing scratches That is, the plant growth-promoting composition of this embodiment may have the above-mentioned effects 1) to 8) in addition to growth-promoting effects such as elongation of stems, leaves or roots, increased leaf number, promotion of flowering or fruiting, increased number of flowers or fruits, increased plant weight or crop yield, greening, or promotion of tillering.

[0017] The plant growth-promoting composition in this embodiment may have an abiotic stress resistance improving effect. That is, it may be one that imparts resistance to various abiotic (environmental) stresses that plants are subjected to in general. Here, examples of abiotic stress include temperature stress such as high temperature stress and low temperature stress, chemical stress, light stress, dry stress, oxidative stress, pH stress, salt stress such as osmotic stress, hypoxic stress, herbicide stress, physical stress, disease stress, and the like.

[0018] In this embodiment, "abiotic stress resistance" refers to a trait that allows a plant to grow normally even under growth conditions that cause environmental stress, without substantially suffering from undesirable effects such as inability to grow (withering), poor growth (e.g., whitening or yellowing of the plant body, reduced root length or reduced number of leaves), reduced growth rate, or reduced plant body weight or crop yield. By improving the abiotic stress resistance of a plant with the plant growth-promoting composition of this embodiment, the plant can grow normally even in an external environment that causes undesirable effects on the growth of a normal plant.

[0019] The effect of imparting temperature stress tolerance of the plant growth-promoting composition in this embodiment includes, for example, the effect of promoting normal growth under high temperature conditions of 35° C. to 55° C. and low temperature conditions of 0° C. to 10° C. The effect of imparting salt stress includes enabling normal growth in the presence of 0.1 to 3.0 mass % sodium chloride, and the effect of imparting drought stress tolerance includes enabling normal growth even at a relative humidity of 10 to 40%.

[0020] In this embodiment, the abiotic stress tolerance of a plant can be evaluated, for example, by the following means. The presence or absence of salt stress tolerance can be confirmed by growing a target plant in a medium or soil to which salt has been added at an appropriate concentration under conditions of growth temperature and growth period suitable for the plant, and evaluating the phenotype. The presence or absence of drought stress tolerance can be confirmed by growing a target plant under conditions of growth temperature, growth humidity, and growth period suitable for the plant, and evaluating the phenotype. In addition, the presence or absence of low temperature stress tolerance can be confirmed by acclimating a target plant to a low temperature that does not freeze, and then growing the plant under conditions of growth temperature and growth period suitable for the plant, and evaluating the phenotype.

[0021] When the plant growth-promoting composition of the present embodiment has an effect of improving abiotic stress resistance, it may activate a gene in a stress response system. The gene in the stress response system is not particularly limited, and examples thereof include genes generally known as response indicators to temperature stress and drought stress.

[0022] The plant growth-promoting composition of the present embodiment may contain onion extract or onion powder alone, may contain both onion extract and onion powder, or may contain them in combination with one or more agriculturally acceptable ingredients. The agriculturally acceptable ingredients are not particularly limited, and examples thereof include solvents, carriers, excipients, binders, solubilizing agents, stabilizers, thickeners, leavening agents, lubricants, surfactants, oily liquids, buffers, bactericides, antifreeze agents, antifoaming agents, colorants, antioxidants, and further active ingredients. Preferred agriculturally acceptable carriers are agriculturally acceptable liquid carriers such as water, mineral oil fractions such as kerosene or diesel oil, oils of vegetable or animal origin, cyclic or aromatic hydrocarbons (e.g. paraffin, tetrahydronaphthalene, alkylated naphthalenes or derivatives thereof, or alkylated benzenes or derivatives thereof), alcohols (e.g. methanol, ethanol, propanol, butanol or cyclohexanol), ketones (e.g. cyclohexanone), or amines (e.g. N-methylpyrrolidone), or mixtures thereof.

[0023] When the plant growth promoting composition in this embodiment contains one or more additional active ingredients, the additional active ingredients can be various compounds known in the art that have environmental stress resistance improving activity.By containing such one or more additional active ingredients in the plant growth promoting composition, the plant tends to further improve the abiotic stress resistance.

[0024] The plant growth-promoting composition in this embodiment can be used in combination with conventionally known agricultural materials such as pesticides and fertilizers, and it is preferable to use, as the agricultural materials, components derived from bacteria such as actinomycetes or microorganisms such as yeast.

[0025] The plant growth promoting composition in this embodiment can be used as an agricultural chemical formulation or pesticide to promote plant growth. The plant growth promoting composition may be in any form, such as a solid (e.g., powder or granules) or a liquid (e.g., a solution or suspension), and is preferably used in the form of a liquid, such as a solution or suspension. When used as a solution, it may be in a liquid state, and when applied, it may be used as a liquid that is prepared just before use.

[0026] The formulation of the plant growth-promoting composition of this embodiment is not particularly limited, and can be formulated into a formulation commonly used in the present technical field, such as an emulsion, wettable powder, liquid, water-soluble powder, dust, powder, paste, or granules.

[0027] In the present embodiment, the plant to which the plant growth promoting composition is applied is not particularly limited, and examples thereof include angiosperms and gymnosperms. Examples of the target plants include Asteraceae plants such as chrysanthemums and gerberas, Solanaceae plants such as potatoes, tomatoes, and eggplants, Cruciferae plants such as rapeseed and rapeseed, Gramineae plants such as rice, corn, wheat, sugarcane, and barley, Legumes such as soybeans, Apiaceae plants such as carrots, Lamiaceae plants such as basil, mint, and rosemary, Convolvulaceae plants such as morning glory, Salicaceae plants such as poplar, and Euphorbiaceae plants such as castor beans, cassava, and jatropha. , Convolvulaceae plants such as sweet potato, Rutaceae plants such as oranges and lemons, Rosaceae plants such as cherry blossoms and roses, Orchidaceae plants such as Phalaenopsis, Gentianaceae plants such as bellflowers, Primulaceae plants such as cyclamen, Violets such as pansies, Lilies such as lilies, Amaranthaceae plants such as sugar beets, Vitaceae plants such as grapes, Cupressaceae plants such as cedars and cypresses, Oleaceae plants such as olives and sweet osmanthus, and Pinaceae plants such as red pine.

[0028] The target plant may be not only the whole plant (i.e., the complete plant body), but also parts of the plant, such as plant tissues or organs (e.g., cut flowers, or vegetative propagation organs such as rhizomes, tubers, corms or runners), cultured cells and / or callus.

[0029] The plant growth promoting composition in this embodiment can be applied to the whole or part of a plant at any stage of growth, including before or after the plant emerges (e.g., the whole or part of a seed, seedling or mature plant).

[0030] <Method for preparing plant growth promoting composition> The plant growth-promoting composition can be prepared, for example, by obtaining an onion extract or onion powder and then mixing it with the above-mentioned agriculturally acceptable ingredients, as required. The method for obtaining the onion extract is not particularly limited, and a general method for extracting plant extracts can be used. Specifically, for example, the onion extract can be obtained by a method including a step of crushing onion bulbs and removing impurities to obtain onion juice, a step of concentrating the onion juice obtained in the above step to obtain an onion concentrate, and a step of fractionating the onion concentrate obtained in the above step to obtain an onion extract containing specific components. In the step of obtaining the onion extract, hot water extraction or solvent extraction using various solvents can be used as a method for extracting the extract. An example of the hot water extraction is a method in which onions are chopped, water is added to the onions, and soluble components are extracted at 60 to 100°C. An example of the solvent extraction is a method in which onions are treated at a temperature of -15°C to -25°C for a sufficient time to destroy the cell membrane, and then extracted with water or an alcoholic solvent. There is no particular limitation on the method for obtaining onion powder. Fresh or frozen onions or onion extract can be dried by hot air drying, air drying, dry heat drying, reduced pressure drying or the like and then crushed into powder.

[0031] (Crushing and removal process) Onions can be crushed, for example, using fresh onions or dried onions, in a mixer. When crushing onions, an appropriate amount of water may be added to facilitate treatment in the mixer or the like. The crushed onions are filtered through a filter cloth, filter paper or the like to obtain onion juice from which impurities have been removed. When filtering, an extraction solvent such as water or alcohol may be added in advance. Instead of filtration, impurities may be removed by a method in which the supernatant is collected using a centrifuge.

[0032] (concentration process) The onion juice obtained can be concentrated using a rotary evaporator or the like to give an onion concentrate. The concentration may be carried out using a centrifugal evaporator or by freeze-drying. The concentration rate is preferably 3 to 30 times, and more preferably 4 to 20 times. A concentration rate of 5 times or more tends to improve handleability and reduce transportation costs since the amount of the plant growth-promoting composition to be added to a plant is reduced, while a concentration rate of 30 times or less tends to reduce the amount of precipitate in the plant growth-promoting composition and facilitate handling. In preparing the plant growth-promoting composition, it is not essential to concentrate the onion juice, and the obtained onion juice may be subjected as it is to the following fractionation step.

[0033] (Fractionation process) The onion concentrate thus obtained can be fractionated through a column or the like to give an onion extract containing specific components. In the fractionation step, for example, by passing through a column, a hydrophilic fraction and a hydrophobic fraction are obtained, and it is preferable to use the hydrophilic fraction as the onion extract. The onion concentrate may be heat-treated in an autoclave or the like before fractionation through a column or the like.

[0034] The onion extract obtained in the fractionation step may be further subjected to purification treatment or separation treatment of a highly active fraction, if necessary. Examples of purification treatments include filtration, adsorption (ion exchange resin column, activated carbon column, etc.), etc. Examples of separation treatments of a highly active fraction include gel filtration, adsorption, silica gel column chromatography, HPLC, etc.

[0035] <Plant growth promotion method> The plant growth-promoting method in this embodiment is a method for promoting plant growth by applying a composition containing one or more active ingredients selected from the group consisting of the above-mentioned onion extract and onion powder to a plant, or to soil or culture solution in which the plant grows. In this method, the plant growth-promoting composition can be applied to a plant or a part thereof (e.g., a seed, a seedling or a mature plant body) at any growth stage including before or after germination. Moreover, the composition can be applied not only to the plant itself but also to the soil, medium or culture solution in which the plant grows. By applying the plant growth-promoting composition to a plant at any growth stage or to the soil, medium or culture solution in which the plant grows, the growth of the plant can be promoted.

[0036] The plant growth-promoting composition may be applied to a plant once or multiple times. When the plant growth-promoting composition is applied at multiple application times, the plant growth-promoting composition may be applied once or multiple times at each application time.

[0037] The plant growth-promoting composition can be applied to a plant by, for example, adding, spraying, coating, immersing, etc. These may be used alone or in combination of two or more.

[0038] When the plant growth-promoting composition is applied to a plant in a culture solution in which the plant grows, the amount of the plant growth-promoting composition used relative to the culture solution is preferably 0.001 to 1% by mass. When the amount of the plant growth-promoting composition used is within the above range, a sufficient plant growth-promoting effect tends to be obtained.

[0039] The preferable range of the amount used above varies depending on the concentration rate of the onion juice described above, but the above amount is a preferable range when the concentration rate is 3 to 30 times. EXAMPLES

[0040] The present invention will be described more specifically with reference to examples and comparative examples, but the present invention is not limited to these examples in any way.

[0041] (Method for measuring root weight) The roots of the rice plants were identified based on their color and shape, and the weight of the identified roots was measured using a microbalance.

[0042] [Example 1] 246.5 g of onion bulbs were sliced ​​at intervals of 1 to 10 mm, and then 100 g of water was added and crushed in a mixer. Impurities were removed by filtration using filter cloth and filter paper. The filtrate was concentrated about 10 times in a rotary evaporator to obtain an onion extract. A solution containing the fraction obtained by fractionating and heat-treating the onion extract obtained above was added in an amount of 0.36 g (0.04 mass%) to 900 mL of culture solution in which starved rice plants were growing, and the effect on the rice was investigated. As a result, the weight of the rice roots increased by 58.5% compared to when the onion extract was not added, demonstrating an effect of improving the root growth of rice plants (see Fig. 1). In this case, starvation refers to a state in which the nutritional content is below the levels shown in Table 1 below.

[0043] [Table 1]

Claims

1. A plant growth-promoting composition comprising as an active ingredient one or more members selected from the group consisting of onion extract and onion powder.

2. The plant growth-promoting composition according to claim 1, having one or more plant growth-promoting effects selected from the group consisting of elongation of stems, leaves or roots, increased leaf number, promotion of flowering or fruiting, increased number of flowers or fruits, increased plant weight or crop yield, greening, and promotion of tillering.

3. The plant growth-promoting composition according to claim 1 or 2, which has an effect of improving abiotic stress resistance.

4. The plant growth-promoting composition according to claim 3, which has an effect of improving stress resistance to one or more stresses selected from the group consisting of temperature stress, chemical stress, light stress, drought stress, pH stress, salt stress, hypoxic stress, herbicide stress, physical stress, and disease stress.

5. The plant growth promoting composition according to claim 3, which activates a gene in a stress response system.

6. 1. A method for promoting plant growth, comprising applying to a plant, or to soil or a culture solution in which a plant grows, a plant growth-promoting composition containing one or more types selected from the group consisting of onion extract and onion powder as an active ingredient.

7. The plant growth promoting method according to claim 6, wherein the amount of the plant growth promoting composition used relative to the culture solution is 0.001 to 1% by mass.

8. 7. The method for promoting plant growth according to claim 6, wherein the onion extract or onion powder is extracted from one or more parts of onions discharged from a farm, a sorting house or a factory.

Images