Agronomy Webinar | Beyond Organics: The Science of Biostimulants and Biopesticides
25 November 2025
Welcome from the Chairs
The webinar aims to catalyze positive change in organic horticulture, in line with EU regulations and the European Green Deal's target for organic farming by 2030. It highlights fostering environmentally sustainable agriculture by studying and promoting the synergistic benefits of hybrid biological preparations in organic horticulture, with a focus on improving plant response and addressing challenges in pest control. It will be necessary to promote the definition and use of specific hybrid biological preparations, which combine a biostimulant based on hydrolyzed plant proteins and a microbial-based biopesticide, which can offer synergistic benefits in organic horticulture. The overall objective is to improve plant response, combat pests, and achieve increased yields in an environmentally sustainable and resource-efficient manner.
Chair: Prof. Dr. Youssef Rouphael and Prof. Dr. Giandomenico Corrado
Date: 25 November 2025
Time: 3:00 pm CET | 9:00 am EDT
Webinar ID: 879 0357 3363
Webinar Secretariat: journal.webinar@mdpi.com
Event Chairs
Department of Agricultural Sciences, University of Naples, Portici, Italy
A Full Professor of Horticulture and Floriculture at the University of Naples Federico II in Italy, specializing in protected cultivation and soilless culture, greenhouse crops, plant nutrition, and biostimulants. His research focuses on optimizing vegetable production under various stress conditions using beneficial microorganisms and sustainable practices.
Department of Agricultural Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, Portici, Italy
Full Professor at the University of Naples Federico II in Italy. His research focuses on molecular markers and gene expression of plants.
Keynote Speakers
Department of Agricultural Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, Portici, Italy
A postdoctoral researcher at the Department of Agriculture of Federico II University in Naples. His research focuses on studying and understanding the mechanisms activated by the application of non-microbial biostimulants in adverse abiotic conditions.
Department of Environmental, Biological and Pharmaceutical Sciences and Technologies, University of Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, Caserta, Italy
Since December 2020, Petronia Carillo has been a Full Professor of Agronomy at the University of Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, where she teaches Plant Physiology, Postharvest Physiology, and Agronomy. Her research explores how plants adapt to abiotic stresses by modulating carbon and nitrogen metabolism. She combines metabolic profiling with physiological approaches to uncover the mechanisms of stress tolerance and, more recently, to evaluate the effects of biostimulants in improving plant performance and resilience.
Department of Agricultural Sciences, University of Sassari, Viale Italia, Sassari, Italy
He is a scientist engaged in research, development and technology transfer in the field of biological control of insect pests of agricultural, forestry and medical-veterinary importance. He graduated in Agricultural Sciences and was awarded a PhD in Entomology at the University of Perugia (Italy). He was visiting scientist at the University of Cambridge (UK) and Fulbright fellow at the University of Santa Clara (California). He is a Professor of General and Applied Entomology at the University of Sassari (Sardinia, Italy). Many of his studies have been dedicated to entomopathogenic microorganisms and their interaction with insects. He is the chair of the Bacteria division of the Society for Invertebrate Pathology.
Registration
This is a FREE webinar. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information on how to join the webinar. Registrations with academic institutional email addresses will be prioritized.
Certificates of attendance will be delivered to those who attend the live webinar.
Can’t attend? Register anyway and we’ll let you know when the recording is available to watch.
Program
|
Speaker/Presentation |
Time in CET |
|
Youssef Rouphael and Giandomenico Corrado (Co-Chairs) Introduction |
3:00 - 3:10 pm |
|
Michele Ciriello (Speaker 1) Feeding the Future: Agronomic Impacts of Biostimulants and Biopesticides in Organic Systems |
3:10 - 3:30 pm |
|
Petronia Carillo (Speaker 2) Biostimulants for plant stress physiology and sustainable horticulture |
3:30 - 3:50 pm |
|
Luca Ruiu (Speaker 3) Entomopathogens in sustainable horticulture |
3:50 - 4:10 pm |
|
Q&A |
4:10 - 4:25 pm |
|
Youssef Rouphael and Giandomenico Corrado (Co-Chairs) Closing of Webinar |
4:25 - 4:30 pm |
Relevant Special Issue
Functional Biostimulants: A Toolbox for Securing Yield Stability and Sustainability
Editors: Prof. Dr. Youssef Rouphael and Prof. Dr. Guiseppe Colla
Sponsors and Partners
Organizers
