Czechia: How innovation takes root
Published on: 26 August 2025
Research and development work on Legume Technology’s products is not limited to our lab in Nottingham, England. Ludek Nowak, of our Czechia CE distributor Agrinova Consulting, s.r.o., has been trialling a novel use of ROOTFiX.
It was in a taxi, in Kyiv, that I first got to know Legume Technology. I asked Bruce Knight for something that would shake up the Czech market – something innovative, a game-changer if you like – and the first product he offered me was LIQUIFiX.
In those days, there was no use of liquid in inoculants, so LIQUIFiX really was a product with stand-out qualities. And unlike a lot of other products, its properties were not in doubt: farmers saw clear differences in the results. Those early batches of treated seed built real customer trust and stimulated an appetite for innovation.
Now, after six years as Legume Technology’s distributor in the Central European region, there’s a great two-way relationship. Bruce and I share a similar outlook, where innovation is the driver, underpinned by a commitment to good science. It’s a great fit for Agrinova and we often share ideas and pursue new avenues.
It was this approach that opened up a new opportunity for ROOTFiX, the Bacillus-based inoculant. We’ve been working with ROOTFiX since 2021, pre-launch, conducting early trials that have fed into the strong body of evidence that makes ROOTFiX such a compelling product.
However, ROOTFiX has always made cereals its primary focus, LT pushing it as their first cereal inoculant. The case is compelling: its ability to improve phosphorus acquisition is clear and much has also been made of how it can reduce stress during early establishment, leading to better uniformity. We saw a 20% increase in establishment uniformity over the first 28 days post-drilling.
While legumes have also been in ROOTFiX’s sights, I was keen to see if we could find ways of achieving similar results by putting ROOTFiX to work in other crops. After all, crops like corn, soybeans, sugar beet and oilseed rape – all grown widely in this region – were suffering from climate change effects, such as irregular rainfall, wider temperature fluctuations, drought and flooding. What if we could bring some of ROOTFiX’s stress-relief abilities to these crops?
Yet there was an obstacle. Much of this type of seed is pre-treated and sent straight to farmers for drilling. On-farm inoculation would be difficult.
But around the same time, we had started a trial to test the efficacy of phosphorus microgranules as an alternative to standard practice diammonium phosphate (DAP) applications. We found they were five times more efficient than DAP, an interesting discovery in itself. And then there was another thought…
What if we could inoculate the microgranules with ROOTFiX? Not only would these bring the benefits of ROOTFiX to otherwise inaccessible seed, but we surmised that the Bacillus itself would improve the solubilisation of the phosphorus within the microgranules, preventing it from being locked up into non-plant accessible forms.
We tested the hypothesis last year, in both oilseed rape and corn. The treated microgranules are applied in-furrow, through the planter, together with the seed. From there, not only does the Bacillus solubilise the phosphorus, but also colonises the seedling’s roots just as it would have had the seed received a ROOTFiX inoculation.
We saw improved vitality and vigour in the areas treated with ROOTFiX; further trials are now underway, for which we’ll use satellite imaging to better quantify the effects on establishment and vigour. We also want to examine in more detail – perhaps with input from Legume Technology itself – how the Bacillus transfers from the microgranules to the roots, and what can be done to optimise the process.
Innovation? Certainly, if innovation is defined as doing something differently. It sums up all we want to do at Agrinova – from seed to harvest, to find solutions to each stage where the past approach to nutrition is failing. It’s great to be working with a partner, like Legume Technology, who shares that same viewpoint and ambition.