Bio? Logical!

KWS develops biological seed coatings for sugarbeet and other crops.

Seeds are particularly sensitive to diseases and pests immediately after sowing. To protect them from external stress factors and promote their development, they are often enveloped with seed coatings. These coatings may contain synthetic herbicides or biological plant protection agents, so-called Biologicals.

Biologicals consist of beneficial microorganisms such as bacteria, fungi and other substances of natural origin, such as plant extracts. They can act as biological crop protection, improve the fixation of nitrogen, or also promote the root development and germination of the plants.

Nora Temme, Lead Biologicals at KWS: “Biologicals allow us to make systematic use of natural interactions and introduce them into the environment.” Biological seed coatings offer farmers additional options for specific applications. KWS recently launched a biological seed coating expressly for sugarbeet for the first time. Further biologicals for other crops are planned to follow.

1 / 6

Nora Temme, Lead Biologicals at KWS, is driving the development of biologicals at KWS.
2 / 6

At the field trial, Nora Temme and Mario Schumann, Research Lead Phytopathology Services, get an overview of the development of the sugar beet plants.
3 / 6

In the laboratory, Lisa Vollmer, technical assistant Biologicals, analyzes the survival rate of the biological coatings.
4 / 6

Tony Pawlik, research assistant Biologicals, examines the bacterial strains at the sterile bench.
5 / 6

The strains of bacteria specifically selected for Biologicals support juvenile plant development and yield potential under stress conditions such as drought or cold.
6 / 6

The sugar beet plants on the right were treated with a biological seed coating in addition to the previous standard coating (see left). The Biologicals improve the juvenile plant development and a more homogeneous emergence of the sugar beet seedlings in the field.