Enhancing Water Use Efficiency

Meeting the challenge of drought with improved water use efficiency

Water is one of the most limiting factors in global crop production: with increasingly unpredictable rainfall patterns, drier springs, and greater competition for freshwater resources, improving Water Use Efficiency (WUE) is now a critical goal in UK and global agriculture. In a variety of crops, the ability to produce more yield per unit of water has a significant impact on both economic and agronomic success.

Water Use Efficiency is especially important in:

Cereals and wheat, where drought during tillering or grain fill severely impacts yield.
Maize, where water stress at flowering or grain fill can dramatically reduce harvestable yield
Sugar beet, due to its long season and sensitivity to moisture levels.
Oilseed rape, where dry springs impair root development and nitrogen uptake.

Biostimulants as a tool to improve WUE

Biostimulants like Status® and Nutrino Pro, offer growers practical, proven tools to increase WUE by enhancing root growth and quality, improving nitrogen assimilation, and maintaining photosynthetic efficiency during drought stress.

Status®

Status® contains MTU® and pidolic acid, working in tandem to protect photosynthesis and sustain nitrogen use. Trials have shown:

A 43% increase in root dry weight in winter wheat under drought conditions.
Faster recovery from water stress, as observed in sugar beet and wheat trials.
Maintained chlorophyll content and green leaf area, aiding prolonged growth and sugar accumulation.

These effects directly support better WUE by keeping the plant functioning and growing during periods when water supply is restricted.

Nutrino Pro

Nutrino Pro, a controlled-release foliar nitrogen product, contains both pidolic acid and R100 biostimulants. Its benefits include:

Greater than 95% nitrogen use efficiency, compared to 30–50% from granular fertilisers.
Enhanced magnesium uptake, promoting chlorophyll synthesis and photosynthesis.
Pidolic acid enabling shoot and root growth under stress

Phosphite

In trials with the University of Nottingham, it was confirmed that phosphite foliar applications:

Increase root biomass by ~30% across species.
Improve cis-zeatin cytokinin levels, driving root development.
Enhance leaf-level water use efficiency, particularly under mild stress.

Phosphites are not nutrients, but true biostimulants that trigger internal responses for more efficient water and nutrient use. Products from IntraCrop that contain phosphites are Incite, Prosper Plus and Prosper ST.

Implications for Growers

The improved root growth, enhanced nutrient uptake, and prolonged canopy greenness driven by these biostimulants help growers:

Increase yield under water-limited conditions.
Sustain growth in variable climates.
Reduce reliance on irrigation or mitigate the impact of its absence.

Water use efficiency is essential. Biostimulants like Status®, Nutrino Pro, and phosphite-based products deliver real, measurable benefits across a wide range of crops by improving the plant’s ability to withstand and recover from water-related stress. In doing so, they support more sustainable, resilient, and profitable farming across the UK and beyond.