OMRI-LISTED® Sustainable Fertilizer
Prime Soil With a Novel Plant Growth Strategy
Growers are continuously seeking new sustainable ways to improve the health and growth of their crops. Especially young plant growers who are often at the forefront of the plant industry regarding the latest growing techniques and current market trends.
At Kemin, our approach to plant health consists of giving them a great start. We believe in maximizing the potential of the growing environment where a plant grows is a more powerful option. That is why we developed Valena™.
Valena is a new generation of OMRI-Listed® fertilizer that provides more than N.P.K nutrients to plants. Instead, Valena is a dry powder to use at seedling or transplant that primes the growing media with a unique source of 1,3-β-glucan material derived from Kemin’s sustainable microalgae Euglena gracilis known to elicit plants’ defense responses.
Valena helps promote higher quality plants, higher crop yield, and help with an earlier transplant. We believe Valena is a great sustainable alternative product to traditional liquid fertilizers or biostimulants to help growers upgrade their nutritional program and reach their farming potential.
EUGLENA GRACILIS, KEMIN's sUSTAINABLE MATERIAL FOR PLANT GROWTH
Valena is not from brown kelp seaweed that grows in shallow, saltwater near coastal fronts that are used in farming as a plant growth regulator and extracted for the phytohormones auxin and cytokinin. Valena is nothing like that. The active ingredient in Valena is derived from Kemin’s proprietary strain of whole dried unicellular microalgae called Euglena gracilis. Euglena are found all over the world and can live in fresh or brackish water and in moist soils.
At Kemin, we ferment E. gracilis in-house, in a controlled environment with food grade ingredients to produce consistently to achieve at least 50 percent paramylon. Salinity, heavy metals, or other potential environmental contaminants are controlled and are not a concern.
Unlike most other microorganisms which store glucose as starch, E. gracilis stores its food for future use in its pyrenoids as a complex carbohydrate molecule called paramylon. Paramylon is an insoluble, large, linear and crystalline polysaccharide storage molecule, composed of glucose linked together by beta-glycosidic bonds between the 1- and 3-carbons also referred to as a 1,3-β-glucan.
THE KEMIN DIFFERENCE - NOT ALL β-GLUCANS ARE THE SAME
Unlike other β-glucan, our 1,3-β-glucan is unique to Euglena and has the highest purity form currently available on the market, with a concentration of fifty percent compared to other types of glucans (i.e. laminarin 2-9%) extracted from other sources.
GUARANTEED ANALYSIS
- β-glucan..........................................>50%
- Total Nitrogen (N) .......................>2%
- Total Phosphorus (P2O5) ..........>1%
- Total Potassium (K2O) ................>1%
KEY FEATURES
- A novel type of fertilizer
- Dry granular powder
- Derived from a natural source
- Biodegradable and environmentally-friendly
Alternative to traditional liquid fertilizers or biostimulants
Designed to fit into any nutritional program
SITES FOR USE
Valena™ is an ideal fertilizer for:
YOUNG PLANT GREENHOUSE GROWERS
Young plant growers deserve a high-quality media foundation to ensure with full confidence the product they offer is of consistent quality, uniformity, and vigor..Valena is highly recommended for the production of large quantities of plugs, cuttings and other greenhouse-grown ornamental plants.
FRUITS & VEGETABLES FARMERS
Commercial growers must keep their business as profitable as possible. Valena is an environmentally friendly and sustainable material that is essential to help increase field-grown fruit and vegetable crop yield.
GROWING MEDIA MANUFACTURERS
Growing media manufacturers must distinguish their brand from the pack. Valena is a first-class innovative ingredient to develop new formulas for professional all-purpose, potting or propagation mixes. Learn More
Smart Mode of Action
Valena has a unique mode of action. When incorporated in the growing media, it breaks down and releases its active ingredients: 1,3-β-glucan, known to elicit plants’ defense responses. Scientific researches showed that substances like 1,3-β-glucan are viewed as Pathogen-Associated Molecular Patterns (PAMPs) by Pattern Recognition Receptors (PRRs)1-4 present naturally in plant cells, meaning that the presence of Valena in the soil can be mistaken for pathogens3,5,6 by the plant. Normally, a plant increases the nutrient uptake to fight off potential pathogens. However, when there is an increase in nutrient uptake with no real pathogenic threat, it means the growing media has been primed to encourage the nutritional uptake favorable to plant growth7-9.
Helps increase nutrient uptake efficiency
Helps get plants ready earlier for transplant
Aids in the growth of thriving plants from the start
Helps increase fruit and vegetable marketable yield.
Directions for Use - Nutritional Program
Dry granular powder form, easy to incorporate into your growing media at the beginning of a plant’s life cycle:
Download the label for full directions for use: Valena_Label
TOP DRESS
- RATE: One application at 1.5 g/L of growing media
- APPLICATION TIMING: At seedling or establishment phase (transplanting)
SOIL INCORPORATED
- RATE: One application at 1.2 kg/cubic yard of growing media
- APPLICATION TIMING: Prior to seedling or planting
TRIALS
Greenhouse Vinca plug trial– With/without Valena.
- (left) Thirty one day after planting (31DAP), the Vinca plugs treated with Valena look significantly fuller and greener compared to the untreated plugs.
- (right) Not only did the Valena treated vinca plugs thrive, they were also as big as the control plugs even when sown 11 days later!
More field trials here:
Valena was a 2018 Greenhouse Grower Fresh Ideas
Contact our Sales Managers for trial, pricing or additional product information
Richard Jones - California | 626-372-1153 | Richard.Jones@kemin.com
Brett Cranston - PNW | 515-240-0430 | Brett.Cranston@kemin.com
Darl Reed - Florida | 515-707-6312 | Darl.Reed@kemin.com
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Question? Ask us!
Valena is currently registered, or otherwise authorized for sale, in Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Michigan and Washington. Other registrations have been submitted and are under review. Please contact us to discuss registration in your specific state.
Certain statements may not be applicable in all geographic regions. Product labeling and associated claims may differ based upon regulatory requirements. Consult with your regulatory representative for specific applications and labeling.
References:
1. Bittel, P. and S. Robatzek (2007). Microbe-associated molecular patterns (MAMPs) probe plant immunity. Current Opinion in Plant Biology, 10:335-341.
2. Bigeard, J., Colcombet, J., and H. Hirt (2015). Signaling mechanisms in pattern-triggered immunity (PTI). Molecular Plant, 8:521-539.
3. Burketova, L., Trda, L., Ott, P., and O. Valentova (2015). Bio-based resistance inducers for sustainable plant protection against pathogens. Biotechnology Advances, 33:994-1004.
4. Balmer, A., Pastor, V., Gamir, J., Flors, V., and B. Mauch-Mani (2015). The ‘prime-ome’: towards a holistic approach to priming. Trends in Plant Science. 20:443-452.
5. Schmidt, W. and J. Ebel (1987). Specific binding of a fungal glucan phytoalexin elicitor to membrane fractions from soybean Glycine max. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci., 84:4117-4121.
6. Cosio, E., Frey, T., Verduyn, R., van Boom, J., and J. Ebel (1990). High-affinity binding of a synthetic heptaglucoside and fungal glucan phytoalexin elicitors to soybean membranes, FEBS Lett. 271:223-226.
7. Cheong, J. and M. Hahn (1991). A specific, high-affinity binding site for the hepta-beta-glucoside elicitor exists in soybean membranes. Plant Cell 3:137-147.
