How to Use Fish Amino Acids in Practice

There are several ways in which farmers can incorporate fish amino acids (FAA) into farming practices, including foliar spraying, seed coating and soil drenching. Below is an overview of the main ways to do this. Note that this is general guidance only.

Foliar spraying

Purpose

• Rapid delivery of amino acids and small peptides directly into leaves → better chlorophyll, growth and yield. Trials with FAA sprays in rice and leafy greens show improved chlorophyll, plant height and biomass.

• Good for: vegetative growth, recovery after stress (hail, heat, herbicide stress), and during flowering/fruit set.

How

• Dilution (typical ranges):

  • Many FAA labels: 2–5 ml/L (0.2–0.5%) in water.

  • Some concentrated products: 1:1000–1:2000 (0.1–0.05%) as foliar.

  • Fish hydrolysate tech sheets often recommend ≥1:50 when used as foliar with conventional sprayers.

• Timing

  • Early vegetative stage: 2–3 sprays at 7–14 day intervals.

  • Pre-flowering and early fruit set.

  • After visible stress events.

• Practical tips

  • Spray in early morning/late afternoon to avoid leaf burn.

  • Add a non-ionic wetter if canopy is waxy.

  • Avoid mixing with highly alkaline products; do a jar test first.

Seed coating or priming

Why

• Amino acids can stimulate early germination, root elongation and seedling vigour.

• Commercial FAA products explicitly recommend seed dressing for cereals to improve root growth and cold tolerance.

How

• Simple seed soak

  • 1–3 ml FAA per L water.

  • Soak seeds for 0.5–4 h (shorter for small seeds like brassicas, longer for big seeds like maize/beans).

  • Dry back to original moisture before sowing (spread thinly in shade).

• Slurry coating

  • Mix a small amount of FAA (1–2 ml/L) into water + inert carrier (fine clay, talc, biochar dust).

  • Tumble seed in the slurry until coated, then dry.

• Can be combined with microbial inoculants if compatibility is tested (don’t exceed ~0.3–0.5% FAA in the slurry to avoid osmotic stress on microbes).

Soil drenching around the root zone

Why

• Fish hydrolysates are excellent substrates for soil fungi and bacteria, supporting nutrient cycling and improved soil structure.

• How

• Dilution examples from labels:

  • 10 ml FAA in 10 L water (1 ml/L) for soil drench around plants.

  • Fish hydrolysate: 1:10 with water as soil drench or stubble breaker (very product-specific).

• Application

  • Apply 200–500 ml of dilute solution per plant (horticultural crops), or 200–1000 L/ha in broadacre (depending on water volume and system).

  • Key timings: at transplanting, early vegetative stage, after pruning, or after strong rain events to re-energise soil biology.

Fertigation (drip / sprinkler / pivot)

Why

• Efficient way to combine soil and root effects over large areas.

How

• Product guidelines:

  • Some FAA products: 3 ml/L of irrigation water via drip (sometimes specified per m²).

  • Others give 7.5–10 kg/ha FAA/fish amino fertilizer via fertigation over a crop cycle.

• Practice

  • Inject into the middle third of the irrigation set (avoid the very beginning and end).

  • Use screened / filtered product to reduce emitter clogging.

  • Combine with other fertigation nutrients, but avoid strongly alkaline mixes and do a compatibility test.

Root dips & transplant soaks

Why

• Softening transplant shock and encouraging rapid root re-growth for vegetables, fruit trees, ornamentals.

How

• Bare-root trees / vines:

  • Make a slurry: water + fine clay or compost + 2–5 ml FAA/L.

  • Dip roots thoroughly just before planting.

• Vegetable plugs / seedlings:

  • 1–2 ml/L FAA in clean water.

  • Dip tray root balls for 5–10 minutes, or water them in with this solution immediately after transplanting.

Fish protein hydrolysate literature consistently shows enhanced root development and early biomass with these kinds of treatments.

Compost, bokashi & compost teas

Why

• FAA is a fantastic nitrogen and carbon source for microbes; it accelerates decomposition and boosts microbial diversity in compost/teas.

How

• Compost pile

  • As you build layers, sprinkle dilute FAA (5–10 ml/L, light watering) over carbon-heavy layers (straw, leaves).

  • Helps maintain N levels and speeds up breakdown.

• Bokashi / fermented substrates

  • Mix small amounts of FAA into bran/EM mixes or other fermentation systems to increase amino N input.

• Compost teas / microbial brews

  • Add FAA at 1–3 ml/L at the start of the aerated brew.

  • Too much can cause foaming or anaerobic conditions, so keep doses modest.

Sources

• Priyanka, B., T. Ramesh, S. Rathika and Balasubramaniam, P. 2019. Foliar Application of Fish Amino Acid and Egg Amino Acid to Improve the Physiological Parameters of Rice. Int.J.Curr.Microbiol.App.Sci. 8(2): 3005-3009. https://doi.org/10.20546/ijcmas.2019.802.351

• Madende, M.; Hayes, M. Fish By-Product Use as Biostimulants: An Overview of the Current State of the Art, Including Relevant Legislation and Regulations within the EU and USA. Molecules 2020, 25, 1122. https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules25051122

• Nataliia Nuzhyna, Nataliia Raksha, Tetiana Halenova, Tetiana Vovk, Oleksiy Savchuk, Tetiana Maievska, Kostiantyn Maievskyi, Oksana Tonkha, Liudmyla Ostapchenko,

  Fish Hydrolysates as Potential Biostimulants for Growing Legumes and Cereals to Reduce Temperature Stress. The Open Agriculture Journal, Volume 18, 2024 https://doi.org/10.2174/0118743315337010240830071253