Vasilica Onofrei
University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine Romania
Title: Organic foliar fertilization increases polyphenol content and antioxidant activity of Cynara scolymus L.
Biography
Biography: Vasilica Onofrei
Abstract
Nowadays, the demand for medicinal plants for the pharmaceutical industry but also for food and cosmetics is constantly growing. This obliges agronomists to find technological solutions to increase production more efficient. At the same time, the increase in quality of agricultural products through the use of technology and organic fertilizers is demanded. An alternative to conventional fertilizers are organic fertilizers that can be applied as foliar and soil. Because fertilizers used to increase plant production affects the quality in terms of the content of bioactive substances such as phenols, this paper aims at highlighting the ecological foliar fertilizers (Fylo®, GeolinoPlants & Flowers®, Cropmax®, Fitokondi®) influence on content total phenolics, flavonoids and antioxidant activity.
The total content of phenolics recorded the highest values ​​for the fertilizer Fitokondi - 162 mg GAE/g DW, followed by Geolino – 150 mg GAE/g DW, compared to 116 mg GAE/g DW in unfertilized plants. In terms of the content of flavonoids, only Geolino lead to an increase, with 386.38 mg quercetin/g DW, compared to 332.92 mg quercetin/g DW in control plants. Free radical scavenging capacity was 38% in the Geolino treatment and of 31% in control plants.
Foliar fertilization of medicinal plants can thus be used to obtain increased yield and phenolic compounds synthesis, allowing better performance of plants under organic fertilization. The foliar fertilizers treatments influenced the culture of Cynara scolymus L. in the first year of cultivation. These partial results are the starting point for future analysis and experiments regarding quality and yield of artichoke. Such foliar fertilizers can be recommended for ecological cultivation of artichoke, both as a vegetable and also as a medicinal plant, with important therapeutic properties.