<i>Trichoderma</i> Bio-inoculant Promotes the Growth and Yield of Pepper (<i>Capsicum annuum</i> L): An Open Field Trial

Abstract

<i>Trichoderma</i> is a ubiquitous fungal genus widely used in agriculture. Their ability to mininize fertiliser dosage, pesticide rationing, and increase crops yield have offered huge avenues for sustainable agriculture. Nonetheless, given the diversity of the world's agro-ecosystems, their widespread adoption has been restricted. This work aimed at investigating the impact of solid formulation of a consortium of two <i>Trichoderma</i> strains, <i>T. atroviridae</i> T2 and <i>T. Harzianum</i> T8, on the growth and yield of hot Pepper under open-field conditions. When compared to un-primed plants, <i>Trichoderma</i>-primed plants boosted Chla, Chlb, Chl (a+b) and Carotenoid by up to 122%, 11%, 113%, and 48%, respectively. Likewise, 108%, 220% and 76% more phosphorus, nitrogen and auxin were accumulated in <i>Trichoderma</i> inoculated tissues, leading to significant increases in almost all agro-morphological parameters, culminating at 23.5%, 54%, and 23.5%, respectively for production yield (PY), fruit diameter (FD), and Pepper fruits weight (PY) as compared to un-inoculated counterparts. There was no difference in specific activities of catalase (CAT) and peroxidase (POX), even though there were increases in phenolic (17%) and total proteins (15%). These findings suggest that <i>Trichoderma</i> fertilisation can redirected plant response depending of plant statue, which prioritised host fitness and associated biomolecules under our experimental settings with the absence/least-biotic stresses.