Abstract
Gray mold caused by Botrytis cinerea is a common postharvest disease in strawberries, reducing shelf life considerably. We investigated the potential of the yeast-like biocontrol fungus Aureobasidium pullulans (AP-SLU6) vectored by bumblebees (Bombus terrestris) in the Flying Doctors® system to inhibit the pathogen and increase the shelf life of harvested strawberries (cultivar Sonata). Using bumblebees as vectors of various biocontrol agents is becoming increasingly popular, but any potentially negative effects on bee performance have been understudied. Our results show that, over the 4-week period of the trial, the performance and activity of the bees were not negatively affected by A. pullulans. The bees successfully picked up the powder formulation; then, they carried and deposited it on the flowers. The vectoring of the biocontrol agent significantly reduced gray mold development on the harvested fruits by 45% and increased shelf life by 100% in comparison with control treatments. This suggests that the biocontrol fungus applied during flowering successfully reduced Botrytis infection and thus, effectively protected the fruits from gray mold. In addition, the bee-vectored application of the biocontrol agent was found to be significantly more effective than spray application because the latter may temporarily increase humidity around the flower, thereby creating a suitable environment for the pathogen to thrive. In summary, our study demonstrates that A. pullulans vectored by bumblebees can decrease gray mold infection and improve the shelf life of strawberries without adversely affecting the bees, thus providing a basis for the sustainable and efficient control of gray mold on strawberry.[Formula: see text] Copyright © 2022 The Author(s). This is an open access article distributed under the CC BY 4.0 International license.
Highlights
Grey mould caused by the fungus Botrytis cinerea Pers. is one of the most devastating diseases of many crops, including strawberry (Fragaria × ananassa Duch) (Petrasch et al.2019)
Our tests for any effects that A. pullulans powder formulation might have on bee performance under greenhouse conditions revealed that all hives gained weight during the experimental period, but there were no significant differences between the A. pullulans and control treatments (F1,14 = 2.04; P = 0.175, Fig. 1A)
Our study was designed to investigate the potential of the new biocontrol agent, A. pullulans (AP-SLU6), to control grey mould in strawberry using traditional spraying and Phytopathology entomovectoring technology
Summary
Grey mould caused by the fungus Botrytis cinerea Pers. is one of the most devastating diseases of many crops, including strawberry (Fragaria × ananassa Duch) (Petrasch et al.2019). Grey mould is typically controlled by spraying synthetic fungicides. Chemical control frequently has further negative side-effects, such as reduced pollen viability, which can lead to suboptimal fertilization and consequent fruit deformation (Kovach et al 2000). For these reasons, it is essential to develop new sustainable approaches to combat grey mould. Biological control is one such promising method that may reduce, and even eliminate, the need for chemical control (Stenberg et al 2021). The availability of efficient and reliable biocontrol organisms is still limited and application techniques need to be further improved
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