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Writer's pictureAntonia Z

The Roles and differences among Amino Acid, Fulvic Acid and Humic Acid

Amino Acids, Fulvic Acid, and Humic Acid: the function and difference between the three major biostimulants


Amino Acids


Description

Amino acid is a general term for a class of organic compounds containing amino and carboxyl groups. Amino acids are the basic components of biologically functional macromolecules called proteins and are the basic substances that make up the proteins required for plant and animal nutrition. Amino acids are organic compounds containing basic amino groups and acidic carboxyl groups. The amino group attached to α-carbon is α-amino acid. The amino acids that make up proteins are all α-amino acids. One of the roles of proteins in plants is to participate directly in various physiological activities of plants and the synthesis of endogenous plant hormones.


Production methods

①Acid hydrolysis (low cost, relatively simple process, hydrochloric acid or sulfuric acid is used for hydrolysis)


②Fermentation (divided into direct fermentation and addition of precursors)


③Enzymatic hydrolysis (relatively high cost compared to acid hydrolysis)


The role of Amino Acid (fertilizer)

Amino acid fertilizer is used to plant amino acids as a substrate. The use of its great surface activity and adsorption and retention capacity, when used as a fertilizer, will add some of the plant growth and development of trace elements (calcium, magnesium, iron, copper, manganese, zinc, boron, molybdenum and so on), through the chelating (complexing) to form the organic, inorganic complexes.


It can maintain the slow release and full utilization of large amounts of elements and ensure the stable and long-lasting effect of trace elements; it can enhance the respiration of plants, improve the oxidation-reduction process of plants, and promote the good effect of plant metabolism.


At the same time, it can also promote photosynthesis and chlorophyll formation and has obvious promotion and activation effects on physiological and biochemical processes such as oxidized active enzyme activities, seed germination, nutrient absorption, root growth, and development. Especially, its affinity with plants is incomparable to any other substance.


Fulvic Acid


Description

Fulvic Acid (FA) is the water-soluble part of humic acid with the smallest molecular weight and the highest content of active groups, and its functional groups interact with each other, reflecting a variety of specific physicochemical properties, and it can perform a variety of physiological functions after it enters the plant body. It can play a variety of physiological functions, through the inhibition or activation of enzymes and act on the metabolism of the plant body, reflecting obvious stimulating effects, and play therapeutic effects through the endogenous It can play a therapeutic role by inhibiting or activating the enzymes, and by endogenous hormone secretion, regulating and improving the immune function of the organism.


Features

Fulvic Acid has the general characteristics of humic acid:


Firstly, its molecular weight is small and easy to be absorbed and utilized by organisms.


Secondly, it has more functional groups, which is more physiologically active than general humic acid, and has stronger complexing ability to metal ions.


Thirdly, it can be directly dissolved in water and its aqueous solution is acidic. It can promote plant growth, especially to control the openness of the stomata on the leaf surface of the crop properly, reduce transpiration, play an important role in drought-resistance, improve the ability of resistance to adversity, increase the yield and improve the quality of the role.


The role of Fulvic Acid


1. Stimulate plant activity: unknown growth-promoting factor with high biological activity function, which enhances oxidizing enzyme activity and other metabolic activities in the plant strain. Although Fulvic Acid does not contain hormone-like substances, but the use of the process has shown with the chemical synthesis of growth hormone, cytokinin, abscisic acid and many other plant hormones like the role of the plant's growth and development plays a comprehensive regulatory role.


2. Enhance crop resistance: Fulvic Acid has the remarkable function of cold and drought resistance.


3. Slow-release fertilizer: improve the use of fertilizers and pesticides, improve the soil granular structure.


4. Chelating middle and micronutrients: strong complexation ability, improve the absorption and operation of plant micro elements, make them better utilized by plants.


5. Preventing and controlling plant diseases and enhancing disease resistance: Fulvic Acid is used as a synergist of pesticides to improve the effect of prevention and control, but it can't replace pesticides.


6. Anti-flocculation, buffering, good solubility: strong ability to interact with metal ions. Its anti-flocculation ability is significantly higher than that of humic acid and similar products, it can be dissolved in any acidic and alkaline water from pH1 to 14, flocculation and non-precipitation in high calcium and magnesium saturated brine in hard water, with good stability and strong anti-electrolyte ability.


Humic Acid


Description

Humic acid (HA) is a class of organic substances accumulated from plant and animal remains, mainly those of plants, through microbial decomposition and transformation, as well as a series of complex geochemical reaction processes and accumulation. It is a polymer organic acid composed of aromatic and its various functional groups, with good physiological activity and absorption, complexation, exchange, and other functions.


The main elements of humic acid are carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, and sulfur, and it is a polyvalent phenolic aromatic compound and nitrogen compound condensate. It is widely distributed in low-grade coal, soil, water sediments, animal manure, organic fertilizers, animal, and plant residues, etc.


Classification

Classified according to solubility and color in solvents, it can be divided into three fractions:


1. The part soluble in acetone or ethanol is called Ulmic Acid


2. The part which is not soluble in acetone is called Humic acid


3. The part soluble in water or dilute acid is called Fulvic Acid.


The role of Fulvic Acid


1. Stimulate physiological metabolism


Humic acid contains a variety of active functional genes, which can enhance the activity of catalase and polyphenol oxidase in crops, stimulate physiological metabolism and promote growth and development.


For example, humic acid can promote early germination of seeds, high seedling emergence rate, especially significant at low temperatures; can stimulate the root system extreme meristematic tissue cell division and growth, so that the seedling rooting fast, and promote early coloring and ripening of fruits.


2. Change of fertilizer properties


Humic acid contains carboxyl groups, phenolic hydroxyl groups and other functional groups, there is a strong ion exchange and adsorption capacity, can make ammonium carbonate to reduce ammonium nitrogen loss, improve the utilization of nitrogen fertilizer. The oxidized degradation of nitro humic acid can inhibit urease activity and reduce urea volatilization. Degraded nitro humic acid increases the distance of phosphorus moving in the soil, inhibits soil fixation of water-soluble phosphorus, converts quick-acting phosphorus into late-acting phosphorus, and promotes the absorption of phosphorus by the root system.

In addition, humic acid and insoluble trace elements can be chelated, generating humic acid trace element chelates with good solubility that can be absorbed by crops, thus favoring the absorption of trace elements by the root system and foliage.


3. Improve soil structure


Humic acid can promote the formation of soil granular structure, regulate soil pH, soil water, fertilizer, gas, heat and other conditions, improve soil exchange capacity, to achieve acid-base balance, improve soil water retention and fertilizer retention capacity, promote soil microbial activity, so that aerobic bacteria, actinomycetes, cellulose decomposition of bacteria increase in number, accelerate the decomposition of organic matter into, and promote the release of nutrients to facilitate the absorption of crop Nutrition.

4. Enhancement of drought-resistant characteristics


Humic acid can reduce the intensity of stomatal opening of plant leaves, reduce leaf transpiration, thereby reducing water consumption, so that the water status of the plant body has been improved, to ensure that the crop in drought conditions under normal growth and development, and enhance drought resistance. Humic acid is mostly amphoteric colloid, with large surface activity and inhibitory effect on fungi, which can enhance the cold resistance of crops, easily adsorbed by cell membranes, change the permeability of cell membranes, promote the absorption of inorganic nutrients, prevent rotting disease, root rot, and reduce the number of diseases and insect pests.


5. Improve fruit quality


Humic acid can form complexes or chelates with trace elements, increase the number of trace elements running from roots to leaves or other parts, regulate the ratio and balance of macronutrients and trace elements, and strengthen the enzyme synthesis and running of sugar, starch, protein, fat and various vitamins. It can promote enzyme activity, convert polysaccharide into soluble monosaccharide, increase the synthesis and accumulation of starch, protein and fat substances, accelerate the primary products of various metabolism from the stem and leaves or the root system to the fruits and seeds, and make the fruits plump and thick.





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