Published 2015-09-15
Keywords
- biological control,
- Solanum lycopersicum,
- antagonism
How to Cite
Copyright (c) 2015 Yousra TAGHDI, Rosa HERMOSA, Sara DOMÍNGUEZ, María Belén RUBIO, Haiat ESSALMANI, Carlos NICOLÁS, Enrique MONTE
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Abstract
Fusarium wilt caused by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. lycopersici (FOL) is a major limiting disease in tomato production in Morocco. Commercial and locally produced Moroccan composts and peat were found to reduce Fusarium wilt in tomato plants. We explored the presence of Trichoderma strains in these materials, and in six soils sampled in the North West of Morocco, where a low incidence of Fusarium wilt had been previously observed. The most abundant Trichoderma-like fungus was selected from each soil, compost or peat sample. Twelve Trichoderma strains were isolated and identified molecularly. Trichoderma asperellum CT9 and Trichoderma virens ST11 showed the greatest overall antagonistic activity against FOL, Rhizoctonia solani, Botrytis cinerea and Pythium ultimum. The three strains evaluated in in planta tests, CT9, ST11 and T. virens ST10, reduced tomato Fusarium wilt, and strain ST11 also promoted growth of tomato plants.