Abstract
BackgroundApplication of chemical bactericides, for controlling soft rot bacteria, causes environmental pollution and toxic hazards to human. In addition, it is ineffective, expensive, and limited. Therefore, application of bio-control agents, plant extracts, or safe chemicals may play an important role as safe alternative approaches for controlling phyto-pathogenic bacteria.ObjectiveThis work is aimed to apply bio-control agents (Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus pumilus, Trichoderma harzianum, and Trichoderma virens), aqueous plant extracts (lantana flowers and leaves, lemongrass leaves, and olive cake), and citric acid as pre-sowing treatment for controlling bacterial soft rot pathogen and study their ability for improving yield and quality of potato tubers in field and storage. All treatments were applied as soil treatment and/or foliar spray, except citric acid applied as foliar spray only.ResultsThe cultural filtrates of bio-control agents of B. subtilis, B. pumilus, T. harzianum, and T. virens; aqueous plant extracts of lantana, lemongrass, and olive cake; and citric acid could protect daughter potato tubers against bacterial soft rot disease in field application, except lemongrass (as soil treatment). The bio-control agents highly increased the activities of peroxidase, polyphenol oxidase, and chitinase enzymes, than other treatments. The bio-control agents also improved the shoot parameters, viz, shoot length, number of shoots/pit, and number of leaves/pit and yield parameters, viz, tuber weight/pit, tubers number/pit, and total tubers weight/pit, compared to citric acid and plant extracts, respectively. The treatments as foliar spray have good results for protecting the potato tubers through storage, than soil treatment. The treatments highly enhanced the stored potato tubers quality, viz, dry matter, reducing sugars, total carbohydrates, specific gravity, and starch content.ConclusionsThe tested treatments could protect the potato tubers in field and/or storage against soften development. The treatments could improve the plant growth and yield parameters in field as well as enhanced the stored potato tubers quality and increase the stored time. It is clear that the treatments can be applied as pre-sowing treatment for controlling Erwinia soft rot bacteria.
Highlights
Application of chemical bactericides, for controlling soft rot bacteria, causes environmental pollution and toxic hazards to human
It is clear that the treatments can be applied as presowing treatment for controlling Erwinia soft rot bacteria
Antibacterial treatments Two of rhizobacteria, i.e., B. subtilis and B. pumilus, and two Trichoderma spp., i.e., T. harzianum and T. virens, were obtained from Plant Pathology Dept., National Research Centre, Egypt; three of Egyptian plant species, viz, lantana, lemongrass, and olive cake, were applied as soil treatment and/or foliar spray, while citric acid as safe chemical was applied as foliar spray treatment only
Summary
Application of chemical bactericides, for controlling soft rot bacteria, causes environmental pollution and toxic hazards to human Application of bio-control agents, plant extracts, or safe chemicals may play an important role as safe alternative approaches for controlling phyto-pathogenic bacteria. Application of chemical bactericides for controlling soft rot bacteria is ineffective and their usefulness for disinfecting of potato tubers is limited. It is ineffective and expensive and had harmful effect to environment and human health (Van der Wolf and de Boer 2007). Application of bio-control agents, aqueous plant extracts, or safe chemicals may play an important role as safe alternative approaches for controlling soft rot pathogen
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