Abstract
Biological control of fungal plant pathogens can improve global food availability, one of the three pillars of food security, by reducing crop losses, particularly for low-income farmers. However, the interrelationships of many environmental variables can result in multiple interactions among the organisms and their environment, several of which might contribute to effective biological control. Here, we present an advanced survey of the nature and practice of biological control when it is used to control brown rot in stone fruit. Specifically, we describe the population dynamics of Penicillium frequentans and Epicoccum nigrum and their efficacy as biocontrol agents against brown rot disease under field conditions. The size of P. frequentans population after an application of a P. frequentans conidial formulation during the crop season is bigger than that of E. nigrum following the application of an E. nigrum conidial formulation. Moreover, applications of a P. frequentans conidial formulation during the crop season also caused a higher reduction in the number of Monilinia spp. conidia on the fruit surface than that found after applications of an E. nigrum formulation during the growing season.
Highlights
Plant diseases need to be controlled in order to maintain global food availability, one of the three pillars of food security, and different approaches can be used to prevent, mitigate, or control plant diseases
P. frequentans and E. nigrum are effective biofungicides because they can reduce the number of Monilinia spp. conidia on fruit surfaces
We found that the number of conidia (AUncPC) and the number of colony-forming units (CFUs) (AUcfuPC) for peach and nectarines trees that were treated with a P. frequentans conidial formulation were significantly higher (p = 0.05) than those for those trees that were treated with an E. nigrum conidial formulation (Table 1 and Table 2)
Summary
Plant diseases need to be controlled in order to maintain global food availability, one of the three pillars of food security, and different approaches can be used to prevent, mitigate, or control plant diseases. Epicoccum nigrum Link and Penicillium frequentans Westling are two common constituents of the resident mycobiota of peach twigs and flowers [21] These two fungi have been shown to reduce twig blight caused by M. laxa in experimental stone fruit orchards [22,23,24] and postharvest brown rot caused by M. laxa and M. fructigena in laboratory assays [25,26,27]. This review will (i) describe the population dynamics of Penicillium frequentans and Epicoccum nigrum and their efficacy as BCAs against brown rot disease under field conditions, (ii) explore the relationships between antagonistic populations and biological control, and (iii) briefly outline future directions that might lead to the development of more diverse and effective BCAs
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