Impact of the saffron extract on growth and antioxidant enzymes activity of Solanum lycopersicum L. seedlings in Morrocan open field conditions

An open field experiment was carried out to assess the effect of aqueous saffron extract (ASE) by fertigation and foliar spray as a biostimulant in tomato seedlings' growth and physiological indices. The ASE application by both methods influenced the plants height compared to control. However, the application of the extract at high concentrations negatively affected some of the parameters studied, such as an increase of hydrogen peroxide (H 2 O 2 ) and malondialdehyde (MDA) content, indicating oxidative stress in tomato plants. Nevertheless, the catalase (CAT) and ascorbate peroxidase (APX) enzymes showed an increased activity response to varying concentrations of ASE. However, the application method had a significant effect only on the H 2 O 2 and APX content. Our studies on ASE in treated plants suggest that ASE could improve certain physiological aspects of the recipient plants and a biological stimulator.