The micronutrient application in agriculture takes place through soil application, foliar spraying or added as seed treatments. The latter method, the nutri-priming, is an appealing option due to the easiness in handling it, environment-friendly, cost effectiveness and efficient against multiple environmental stressors. To assess the feasibility of Zn-priming technique on seeds germination, two experiments were conducted and assessed the efficiency on the growth rate, yield and biofortification on the forage maize (Zea mays L.). The first laboratory experiment assessed the effect of Zn-priming for three-time exposures (i.e., 8, 16 and 24 h) on germination parameters. The second experiment was done in a greenhouse, by using the 10 seeds obtained from 24 h priming. Five seed pretreatments were studied (0, 0.1, 0.5, 1 and 11 2 % of zinc sulfate heptahydrate (ZnSO₄·7H₂O)) compared to the recommended dose (5 ppm of Zn at 5–9 leaf stage) provided by soil application. The obtained results revealed that all seed priming, including hydro-priming, improve seed germination performance. Zn-priming increased the grain yield and helped to enrich the seeds in this element, especially seedlings treated with 0.5 % Zn sulphate for 24 h leading to an increase in yield by 47 % and in Zn content by 15 %. The comparison of the results from both techniques showed that Zn-priming could be was very effective than the traditional direct application in soil.

Throughout the last decade, and particularly in 2022, water scarcity has become a critical concern in Morocco and other Mediterranean countries. The lack of rainfall during spring was worsened by a succession of heat waves during the summer. To address this drought, innovative solutions, including the use of new technologies such as hydrogels, will be essential to transform agriculture. This paper presents the findings of a study that evaluated the impact of hydrogel application on onion (Allium cepa) cultivation in Meknes, Morocco. The treatments investigated in this study comprised two different types of hydrogel-based soil additives (Arbovit^® polyacrylate and Huminsorb^® polyacrylate), applied at two rates (30 and 20 kg/ha), and irrigated at two levels of water supply (100% and 50% of daily crop evapotranspiration; ETc). Two control treatments were included, without hydrogel application and with both water amounts. The experiment was conducted in an open field using a completely randomized design. The results indicated a significant impact of both hydrogel-type dose and water dose on onion plant growth, as evidenced by various vegetation parameters. Among the hydrogels tested, Huminsorb^® Polyacrylate produced the most favorable outcomes, with treatment T9 (100%, HP, 30 kg/ha) yielding 70.55 t/ha; this represented an increase of 11 t/ha as compared to the 100% ETc treatment without hydrogel application. Moreover, the combination of hydrogel application with 50% ETc water stress showed promising results, with treatment T4 (HP, 30 kg, 50%) producing almost the same yield as the 100% ETc treatment without hydrogel while saving 208 mm of water.

The agricultural valorization of organic waste, including digestate from anaerobic digestion, can be a good tool to remedy the problem of soil depletion by intensive crops. This study was conducted to evaluate the effect of digestate application on the chemical characteristics of the soil, including N, P, and K content, pH, and electrical conductivity, as well as the agronomic performance of forage corn (Zea mays L.). Digestate was applied and incorporated into the soil at different rates (0; 0+ recommended NPK rates; 15, 30, and 60 t dry weight (DW) ha⁻¹). Digestate application at increasing doses improved soil chemical characteristics at harvest, and the application of 15, 30, and 60 t DW ha⁻¹ significantly decreased soil pH by 0.15, 0.23, and 0.39 units, respectively. For electrical conductivity, the average values recorded are 196, 212, and 255 uS m⁻¹, respectively, to 15, 30, and 60 t DW ha⁻¹ doses. A significant organic matter enrichment of the topsoil layer was observed only for treatments receiving 30 and 60 t DW ha⁻¹. Similarly, our results showed that the N, P, and K contents increased significantly with digestate application at both rates compared to the positive control. Morphological characteristics of the corn plants (height, leaf number, and collar diameter) and ecophysiology (stomatal conductance and chlorophyll) increased in a global manner compared to the negative control. Indeed, the obtained results showed that this improvement was not proportional to the applied doses for all analyzed parameters. However, there was no significant difference between the obtained values in amended plants with 15 t DW ha⁻¹ and those in the positive control (recommended dose in NPK). In comparison to this previous one, height, leaf number, and collar diameter increased by 15%, 13%, and 20%, respectively, with a 30 t DW ha⁻¹ dose and by 34%, 20%, and 24% with a 60 t DW ha⁻¹ dose. Concerning the relative chlorophyll content and stomatal conductance, the values recorded in the plants amended with 60 t DW ha⁻¹ are 1.7 and 2.2 times higher compared with the positive control. The fresh biomass, dry biomass, and root length parameters increased proportionally to the applied dose.