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Asian Journal of Plant Pathology

Year: 2011 | Volume: 5 | Issue: 2 | Page No.: 62-74
DOI: 10.17311/ajppaj.2011.62.74
Management of Root Rot Caused by Rhizoctonia solani and Fusarium oxysporum in Blue Pine (Pinus wallichiana) Through use of Fungal Antagonists
Gh. Hassan Dar, M.A. Beig, F.A. Ahanger, Nadeem A. Ganai and M. Ashraf Ahangar

Abstract: The present study was aimed to identify root rot pathogens of blue pine (Pinus wallichiana) in Kashmir and develop appropriate eco-friendly disease management strategy. During nursery surveys, Fusarium oxysporum, Rhizoctonia solani and Macrophomina phaseolina were found root rot incitants with isolation frequency of 47.3, 29.7 and 13.0%, respectively. Locally isolated antagonists inflicted 33.0-73.3 and 29.5-70.8% mycelial growth inhibition in F. oxysporum and R. solani, respectively, with Trichoderma harzianum and T. viride proving most effective. The mycorrhizal fungi, Pisolithus tinctorius and Laccaria laccata, significantly inhibited the growth of R. solani and F. oxysporum by 46.2 and 45.4 and 44.7 and 43.7%, respectively. Bioagents significantly improved seedling biomass and root/shoot length. Mycorrhizal plants showed 5-13 fold higher rhizosphere phosphatase activity than non-mycorrhizal ones. Four effective fungal bioagents, inoculated individually and in combination with pathogen under nursery conditions, significantly improved seedling biomass and height with maximum gain by P. tinctorius and L. laccata. Rhizoctonia infection decreased biomass and seedling height by 32.6 and 35.4%, whereas bioagents mitigated the pathogenic effect. The bioagents in R. solani/F. oxysporum-infected soil significantly improved seedling biomass and height over pathogen treatments alone. P. tinctorius and L. laccata exhibited 44.2 and 39.1% root colonization in comparison to 19.5-24.2% in presence of pathogens. The study revealed that bioagents, especially mycorrhizae, effectively mitigate root rot in blue pine and can be efficiently exploited in integrated disease management module.

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How to cite this article
Gh. Hassan Dar, M.A. Beig, F.A. Ahanger, Nadeem A. Ganai and M. Ashraf Ahangar, 2011. Management of Root Rot Caused by Rhizoctonia solani and Fusarium oxysporum in Blue Pine (Pinus wallichiana) Through use of Fungal Antagonists. Asian Journal of Plant Pathology, 5: 62-74.

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