Effect of Foliar Application of Methanol on Efficiency, Production and Yield of Plants - A Review

Many cultivated area are situated in arid zone, where crop photosynthesis and productivity is limited by drought. Thus any treatment, such as methanol, that improves plant water relation and reduces stress impacts, could be of benefit. This paper investigated the effects of methanol application on some physiological and growth properties of plants. Recent reports indicate that vegetative growth and yield of C₃ crops were enhanced by foliar methanol application and that overall crop water use was reduced by methanol sprays. It has been suggested that methanol may act as a C source for the plant and a photorespiration inhibitor. However foliar application of methanol solutions on crops would improve their accelerate ripening, reduce impacts of drought and decline crop water requirements. Methanol also appeared to improve the efficiency of water use in C₃ plants, especially under water stress situations. On the other hand, methanol leads to increase of plants resistance to drought stress because these compounds play primarily a role in preventing increasing photorespiration induced in stressed plants.