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REVIEW article
Front. Soil Sci.
Sec. Soil Management
Volume 5 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fsoil.2025.1504045
This article is part of the Research Topic Soil Additives for Sustaining the Soil Ecosystem Services View all 4 articles
Seaweed-Derived Plant Boosters: Revolutionizing Sustainable Farming and Soil Microbiome Health
Provisionally accepted- 1 Indian Institute of Agricultural Biotechnology (ICAR), Ranchi, India
- 2 Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, Punjab, India
- 3 Khalsa College, Amritsar, Amritsar, Punjab, India
- 4 Department of Botany, College of Basic Sciences and Humanities, Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, Punjab, India
- 5 ICAR- Indian Agricultural Research Institute, Regional Station, Pusa Samastipur, Bihar, India
Seaweeds are abundant and valuable marine resources that contain a diverse range of bioactive compounds, including lipids, minerals, phytohormones, amino acids, carbohydrates, osmo-protectants, and antibacterial substances.Historically, seaweeds have been widely used in food, feed, and medicine, but their agricultural significance has gained increasing recognition in recent years. With the growing shift toward organic and sustainable farming, seaweed extracts (SEs) have been explored as biofertilizers, soil conditioners, and natural biocontrol agents. They play a crucial role in enhancing soil health, improving plant growth, and increasing resistance against pests, diseases, and abiotic stressors such as drought, salinity, and extreme temperatures. Their ability to stimulate plant defense mechanisms and promote root development makes them an eco-friendly alternative to synthetic agrochemicals. Numerous studies have demonstrated the efficacy of seaweed extracts in boosting crop productivity while minimizing environmental impact. This review highlights recent advancements in seaweed-based agricultural applications, focusing on their benefits, mechanisms of action, and potential for integration into sustainable farming practices.
Keywords: Seaweed extracts, biofertilizers, biostimulants, plant growth promotion, sustainable agriculture, Soil health, Organic farming, Abiotic stress tolerance
Received: 30 Sep 2024; Accepted: 26 Mar 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Sharma, Singh, Chahal, Kaur and Hasanain. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
Kartik Sharma, Indian Institute of Agricultural Biotechnology (ICAR), Ranchi, India
Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.