Eighteen species of aquatic hyphomycetes were recorded as root endophytes in roots of living plants including grasses and pteridophytes from wet fields near ravine areas. Alatospora acuminata, A. pulchella, Acaulopage tetraceros, Anguillospora crassa, Campylospora chaetocladia, Lemonniera cornuta, L. pseudofloscula, L. terrestris, Pestalotiopsis submersus and Tetrachaetum elegans were found for the first time as root endophytes. A. longissima, Campylospora purvula, Clavariopsis aquatica, Cylindrocarpon aquaticum, Heliscus lugdunensis, Lunulospora curvula, Tetracladium marchalianum and T. setigerum, which were known previously as root endophytes, are reported here on new hosts. Maximum occurrence was found in November and December.

The antibacterial activity of methanol, ethanol, chloroform, and hexane extracts of the leaves of Himalayan gymnospermous plant Ginkgo biloba L. was assessed against five animal and plant pathogenic strains (Agrobacterium tumefaciens, Bacillus subtilis, Escherichia coli, Erwinia chrysanthemi, and Xanthomonas phaseoli) employing disc-diffusion and broth-dilution assays. The methanol extract showed the highest activity (zone of inhibition of 15–21 mm) followed by ethanol (14–19 mm), chloroform (15–20 mm), and hexane (14–19 mm) extracts at 250 μg/mL. A minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of 7.8 μg/mL was found for the methanol extract against most of the pathogens tested.

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Four isolates of waterborne conidial fungi (Tetracheatum elegans, Tetracladium marchalianum, Pestalotiopsis submersus and Flagellospora penicillioides) were investigated for their carbon requirement, using eight different carbon sources (viz. glucose, fructose, sucrose, xylose, starch, cellulose, dextrin and lactose). All fungi tested grew sparsely on the basal medium lacking in carbon, which was the control. However these fungi were found to vary in their ability to use the supplied sources of carbon. Glucose and sucrose were found to be suitable sources of carbon for all four fungal isolates, whereas fructose proved good for T. marchalianum and P. submersus. Starch and xylose also supported growth of T. marchalianum, P. submersus and F. penicillioides. Cellulose, a polysaccharide, was a poor source of carbon for the growth of these isolates. Four g/L of glucose was recorded as the most useful concentration that gives the maximum dry weight of selected fungi (262 mg and 400 mg for T. elegans and P. submersus respectively after 15 d).

An aquatic hyphomycete, Tetracladium nainitalense sp. nov., isolated as a root endophyte from riparian plants from Nainital, Kumaun Himalaya, India, is illustrated and described. The new species is characterized by laterally applanate conidia appearing lobate, with typically four rounded apices and lacking filiform, acicular or subulate elements. An updated key to the species of Tetracladium is provided.