Biological Control of Fusarium Wilt of Muskmelon by Formulations of Aspergillus Niger

Abstract

Aspergillus niger van Tiegh. (An 27) was shown to be a promising biocontrol agent against Fusarium oxysporum Schlecht f. sp. melonis Sny. and Hans., which causes muskmelon wilt. Fruit wastes, such as carrot waste, citrus peels and pomace, mixed fruit pomace, and pineapple peels and pomace, proved to be a promising and cheap alternative source for mass multiplication of A. niger. These wastes are readily available throughout the year and can replace some of the highly priced media used for mass production of biocontrol organisms. Citrus pomace extract (20%) was found to be an excellent liquid medium for mass production. In solid fermentation, fruit wastes were superior to other media used as substrates. A short period of 10 days of incubation was sufficient for the production of 108 colony forming units (cfu) per gram of the material. The extent of control achieved by the seed coating formulation (FSC) was at par with Carbendazim. Formulation for soil application (FSO), a new contribution to the formulation science, could reduce Fusarium wilt disease by 78.31%, when applied at the rate of 8 g/kg of soil. Both FSC and FSO formulations can be stored at room temperature (14–35 °C) for more than a year.

Seed Coating: A Tool for Delivering Beneficial Microbes to Agricultural Crops

“…Overall, it includes, seeds inside a container (e.g., rotating drum, cement mixer), where a binder (e.g., adhesive compound), a filler (bulking agent) if needed, and active ingredients (e.g., nutrients, protectants, and PBM) are mixed (Scott, 1989; Accinelli et al, 2016; Padhi and Pattanayak, 2018). Fillers can be single or mixed components, and the most commonly applied are peat (Georgakopoulos et al, 2002; Hartley et al, 2004; Hameeda et al, 2010), talc (Mukherjee and Sen, 1998; Sabaratnam and Traquair, 2002; Berninger et al, 2016), and lime (Brockwell and Phillips, 1970; Gault and Brockwell, 1980; Padhi and Pattanayak, 2018). These components can function as microbial carriers and modify seed size, shape, and weight.…”

Metabolomic profiling and its association with the bio-efficacy of Aspergillus niger strain against Fusarium wilt of guava

“…Aspergillus niger is a filamentous ascomycetous soil-invading fungus that is effective against most soil-borne pathogens causing wilts (Mandol, 1998 ; Mukherjee and Sen, 1998 ; Gupta and Misra, 2009 ; Nayak and Vibha, 2017 ). The genus Aspergillus was initially illustrated by Micheli ( 1729 ) and later by Link ( 1809 ).…”