Endophytic trichoderma wettable powder for enhanced root and foliar growth.
PlantMate Drench contains a blend of endophytic trichoderma strains, formulated as a wettable powder (WP) designed to maintain healthy roots and improve the vigour of growing plants.
The formulation is designed to establish large numbers of beneficial fungi in and around the rootzone as quickly as possible to offer crop benefits in as little as 3 days.
Suitable for all crops, from nurseries to orchards, PlantMate Drench increases crop resilience, leading to healthier roots and vibrant crops.
PlantMate Drench is easily applied via conventional dripper, T-tape and overhead irrigation, hydroponics, or by boom spray.
Glasshouse/indoor Crops
Organic substrate: 500g / 5000m2, apply every 2 weeks
Inorganic substrate: 500g / 1000 litres every 10 – 14 days
Hydroponic / NFT: 500g / 1000 litres every 10 – 14 days
Field Crops: 750g / hectare, apply monthly
Seed Planting / Seedling Trays: 500g / 100 litres
Orchards & Vineyards: 750g / hectare, 3-5 applications commencing at bud burst.
Detailed technical specifications, application instructions and safety information can be found in the following documents:
What is it and how does it work?
What is it?
PlantMate Drench is a specially formulated Trichoderma WP shown to improve plant performance in a wide range of crops.
PlantMate Drench is formulated with a blend of strains to achieve repeatable results in a wide range of soil types and climate zones. The strains are grown at Agrimm’s purpose built site in Canterbury, New Zealand and formulated with a range of nutrients and starters to ensure that the beneficial fungi can successfully colonise in and around the developing roots.
PlantMate Drench is our most versatile product, used in vegetable crops, nurseries and right through to orchards and vineyards.
Modelled on the work of Unite (NZ), PlantMate Drench partners with PlantMate Granular to help with all new plantings of vines and trees.
In established orchards, apply PlantMate Drench during periods of root flushes to maintain and protect the soil biology in the rootzone.
How does it work?
PlantMate Drench’s proprietary formulation contains a blend of six selected Trichoderma strains that colonise the root zone and promote root and foliar growth. This leads to healthier plants with stronger root systems, which in turn enhances field establishment.
PlantMate Drench contains strains of Trichoderma that have been shown to act as a biocontrol agent against soil-borne pathogens. This can help to reduce losses from replant disease in the orchard and improve seedling survival under pathogen pressure.
The endophytic Trichoderma present in PlantMate Drench has been shown to improve nutrient uptake in plants. This leads to more efficient use of fertilizers and other nutrients, and ultimately better crop performance.
By increasing crop growth, improving crop health, and enhancing nutrient uptake, PlantMate Drench helps growers achieve increased marketable yields. This makes it a valuable tool for farmers looking to maximize productivity and profitability.
PlantMate Drench is easy to apply and can be used from the nursery all the way to established trees. It’s an effective and sustainable solution for growers looking to improve crop performance and maximize yields.
Key Features
Blend of Trichoderma strains proven to offer a broad spectrum of activity.
Stimulates vigorous root growth.
No resistance build up.
Compatible with conventional chemistry.
No MRL’s
Nursery
In nursery applications, PlantMate Drench offers several key benefits. By applying PlantMate Drench into seed trays at planting, it promotes better and more even emergence of seedlings, leading to improved survival rates. This not only enhances the overall health of the nursery stock but also reduces the need for chemical fungicides in the nursery, contributing to a safer environment for staff and end users.
The application of PlantMate Drench in the nursery helps to raise healthy plants. By protecting seedlings and supporting healthy root and foliar growth, PlantMate Drench plays a significant role in elevating the overall plant health and mitigating against abiotic stresses.
The ability of PlantMate Drench to promote root growth is particularly advantageous, as it results in the development of hardier and more stress-tolerant seedlings, which perform better in the retail environment.
Orchard and Vineyard
PlantMate Drench is highly versatile and well suited to use in orchards and vineyards. To achieve success the goal is to establish and maintain a viable and effective population level of Trichoderma in and around the target root zone.
For improved establishment of young vines and trees:
By irrigating PlantMate Drench in soon after planting you will be establishing a highly active colony of Trichoderma directly into to rootzone around the new vine.
For potted rootstock PlantMate Drench can be drenched directly into the PB bag prior to planting. We recommend the addition of PlantMate Granular into the planting hole for Avocado, Kiwifruit, Apple, Citrus and any container grown rootstock. This will provide the best possible start for the young plants.
For the ultimate commercial root dip: PlantMate Drench can be used in combination with Abzorber, an ultra-absorbent polymer granule. This combination creates an easy-to-mix, cost-effective, and user-friendly gel solution.
By combining one 1.5kg pack of PlantMate Drench with one 1kg pack of Abzorber, you can make 250 litres of highly active and protective water absorbent gel. This gel adheres to bare roots and provides moisture and protection against desiccation exactly where it’s needed for the new plantings.
This modern process using PlantMate Drench and Abzorber is considered far cleaner and superior to the old technology of using bentonite clay slurries. Along with convenience, the PlantMate Drench and Abzorber combination offers enhanced efficacy and helps to promote the healthy establishment and growth of young plants.
For the maintenance of established orchards or vineyards: PlantMate Drench should be applied 3-4 times per season. PlantMate Drench can be applied through drippers or fertigation or simply flood jet from the back of a spray rig. The application should coincide with periods of root flushes, which are the times when the roots of the plants experience rapid growth near the surface, usually around early spring and summer. This ensures new fine root hairs are exposed to a fresh boost of protective endophytes.
Ornamental Flower Bulbs
PlantMate Drench has proven to be highly effective in various ornamental flower bulb crops, including Lilies, whether they are grown in greenhouses or in open field.
When planting bulbs in the field, Unite can be applied via boom spray, ensuring thorough coverage and distribution. In covered cropping, such as in greenhouse settings, Unite can be applied through irrigation, allowing the product to reach the root zone effectively.
The use of PlantMate Drench in bulb crops to maintain a vibrant foliage colour, enhancing the overall visual appeal of the flower stems with less yellowing and increasing marketable product.
Additionally, PlantMate Drench promotes increased root mass, which is crucial for the health and vigour of bulb plants. This, in turn, leads to improved resistance to various environmental stresses, such as drought or temperature fluctuations.
One notable advantage of using PlantMate Drench in bulb crops is the improvement in the number of saleable stems. Due to the enhanced root growth and overall plant health, the bulbs produce more robust and desirable stems, increasing their market value and commercial viability.
Overall, the successful use of PlantMate Drench in ornamental flower bulb crops, such as Lilies, has demonstrated better plant health, improved foliage colour, increased root mass and an enhanced resistance to environmental stresses leading to a greater number of saleable stems.
These benefits contribute to the overall success and profitability of bulb cultivation.
Image Below: The crop on the right were planted a week after the one on the left – but used PlantMate Drench at planting.
Trial Results
Celery - Increased marketable yield
For this trial, PlantMate Drench was made into a solution at 10g/L and used to drench trays of celery seedling plugs prior to field planting.
A 1.5kg pack of PlantMate Drench was mixed in to 150L of water and this was used to inoculate 65,000 seedlings with around 2ml each.
In many crops, growers are paid on the number of heads produced, no matter what the size. However, with celery, size does matter, and the quality and size of the crop directly relates to the revenue per hectare.
Large celery are packed 12 to a box – Medium are 16 and Small celery need 20.
In this trial, PlantMate Drench produced a 90% increase in premium cartons alongside a 5% increase in the total cartons produced per hectare.
Celery
New Plantings - Increased Growth
Taking the opportunity to show what PlantMate Drench could achieve in a commercial orchard, we worked with a grower in the Goulburn Valley when they were re-planting a large area of peaches into an area that trees had previously been pulled out.
Multiple rows were selected for this trial and each row was considered one replicate, containing over 60 trees in each one. There were 6 control and 6 treated rows.
The roots of each tree were dipped in a solution of 10g/L of PlantMate Drench and then 20g of PlantMate Granular was put in the planting hole.
A random sample of 24 trees was selected and evaluated from each group and the Height, Width and Trunk diameter were noted 12 months after planting.
The height and trunk diameter of the treated trees was found to be 10% than the control trees and this was a statistical improvement.
As well as this, the width of the trees was increased by 8% compared to control, showing that the increase in biomass of the tree was uniform and consistent.
Peaches
