Abstract
Methyl bromide (MB) and other alternatives were evaluated for suppression of Fusarium spp., Phytophthora spp., and Meloidogyne spp. and their influence on soil microbial communities. Both Fusarium spp. and Phytophthora spp. were significantly reduced by the MB (30.74 mg kg-1), methyl iodide (MI: 45.58 mg kg-1), metham sodium (MS: 53.92 mg kg-1) treatments. MS exhibited comparable effectiveness to MB in controlling Meloidogyne spp. and total nematodes, followed by MI at the tested rate. By contrast, sulfuryl fluoride (SF: 33.04 mg kg-1) and chloroform (CF: 23.68 mg kg-1) showed low efficacy in controlling Fusarium spp., Phytophthora spp., and Meloidogyne spp. MB, MI and MS significantly lowered the abundance of different microbial populations and microbial biomass in soil, whereas SF and CF had limited influence on them compared with the control. Diversity indices in Biolog studies decreased in response to fumigation, but no significant difference was found among treatments in PLFA studies. Principal component and cluster analyses of Biolog and PLFA data sets revealed that MB and MI treatments greatly influenced the soil microbial community functional and structural diversity compared with SF treatment. These results suggest that fumigants with high effectiveness in suppressing soil-borne disease could significantly influence soil microbial community.
Highlights
Fusarium oxysporum, Phytophthora infestans and nematodes such as Meloidogyne spp. can cause great damage in greenhouse crops and lead to reductions in crop yield
Methyl bromide (MB), methyl iodide (MI) and metham sodium (MS) greatly influenced the abundance of soil microbial communities, there was no significant difference among the fumigants treatments and control on the ratios of G+/G- and Fungi/ Bacteria
Microcosm studies indicated that MB, MI and MS could significantly control soil-borne pathogens and nematodes, MI and MS can be used as potential MB alternatives for the suppression of soil-borne diseases
Summary
Phytophthora infestans and nematodes such as Meloidogyne spp. can cause great damage in greenhouse crops and lead to reductions in crop yield. Methyl bromide (MB) is an effective fumigant against soil-borne pathogens and nematodes, because it depletes the ozone layer, methyl bromide will be phased out by 2015 in China. Several alternatives such as metham sodium(MS), 1,3-dichloropropene (1,3-D), chloropicrin(Pic), sulfuryl fluoride(SF), methyl iodide(MI) and other substances have been studied as replacements for methyl bromide pre-plant soil treatment in agriculture [1,2,3,4]. Effect of Methyl Bromide Alternatives on Pathogens, Microbial Community
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