Agronomists can be a tough sell when new seed treatments and crop additives come along. “I tend to be skeptical of these things, and many of our growers are skeptical, but we have worked with Seed+Graphite since 2020, and we are seeing the results they said we should see,” says Doug Seaman, an agronomist with Heritage Cooperative, Vincent, Ohio.

Seed+Graphite is a new product from Verdesian Life Sciences. Joe Vaillancourt, the product manager, says the product worked successfully on farms across the U.S. in 2021, and the company is ready for a major launch in 2022. You can use it in place of a talc-graphite mixture in your planter with corn or soybean seed, he notes.

The product delivers much more than improved seed flow. As a seed treatment, it provides germinating seedlings with micronutrients and helps them overcome abiotic stresses, such as those created by weather being too cool, too hot, too wet or too dry. Vaillancourt contends that the benefits continue throughout the season.

He reports that in corn trials so far, Seed+Graphite has a 77% win rate, meaning it produces an economic benefit over three-fourths of the time. The benefit accrues through better yield. The higher the stress level, the better the yield advantage, and the greater the return on investment, he emphasizes.

Typical talc-graphite products cost 50 to 85 cents per acre. Expect to pay about $3 per acre for Seed+Graphite.

How it works

Mike Canady, also with Verdesian, says there are three key components to Seed+Graphite. First, it contains a mixture of talc and graphite, which allows it to achieve the same benefits for seed flow as traditional products. Second, it has a micronutrient component. Third, it contains metabolites classified as biostimulants.

Nutrients added through this product include calcium, sulfur, cobalt, copper, iron, manganese, molybdenum and zinc, Canady says. Location of these nutrients on the seed promotes uptake by emerging seedlings, he adds.

The biostimulant portion consists of fermentation metabolites from plants, Canady explains. “The extract is filtered so that the product doesn’t include live microbes — just products from fermentation by the microbes,” Canady says. “Since it doesn’t have live microbes, it has excellent shelf life and stores well for extended periods.”

The metabolites play a key role as antioxidants working against oxidants created during times of abiotic stress, Canaday explains. This property helps Seed+Graphite continue working during the season, he notes.

In Ohio, Seaman says demonstration kits that Verdesian distributes help farmers who are skeptical see for themselves that the product can impact seedling growth. The kit contains petri dishes, corn seed and active ingredients from Seed+Graphite. Vaillancourt insists that if you grow out treated vs. non-treated seedlings, you will see a difference.

To request a kit or to learn more, email [email protected] or visit vlsci.com.