A coating composition for application to vegetable plant structures, such as seeds, roots, tubers or bulbs, comprises one or more organic materials selected from waxes having a melting point of at least 50°C； and one or more additives for enhancing seedling growth and/or vigour from the plant structure, the additive being an inorganic material and/or a live biological agent. The wax may be carnauba wax, beeswax, chinese wax, shellac wax, spermaceti wax etc., wherein the wax can be in the form of particles having a volume mean diameter of at least 5 micron. A method of coating the plant structure may comprise heating the organic material to produce a liquid or gas, cooling the heated organic material to below its melting point to form a solid, adding the additives, and machining the solid organic material into particles for subsequent application. Alternatively, the additives may be added to the heated organic material before cooling. A method of coating vegetable plant structures is also claimed.
