Skip to main navigation menu Skip to main content Skip to site footer
Plant Science Today (PST)

Research Articles

Vol. 13 No. sp2 (2026): Recent Advances in Agriculture

In-vitro efficacy of biopesticides against Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. psidii causing guava wilt

DOI
https://doi.org/10.14719/pst.10900
Submitted
27 July 2025
Published
05-05-2026

Abstract

Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. psidii, the causal agent of guava wilt, represents a significant constraint to guava (Psidium guajava L.) cultivation, particularly in the Prayagraj region of Uttar Pradesh, India. The present study was conducted in the year 2024 and aimed to evaluate the in vitro antagonistic efficacy of selected microbial biocontrol agents and botanical extracts against the pathogen. Two fungal antagonists, Trichoderma viride and Trichoderma harzianum, were assessed using the dual culture technique. Among them, T. harzianum demonstrated superior antagonistic activity, achieving a maximum mycelial inhibition of 70.55 %. Concurrently, aqueous extracts from four medicinal plants-Azadirachta indica (neem), Solanum indicum (black nightshade), Moringa oleifera (moringa) and Ageratum conyzoides (goat weed) were evaluated at concentrations of 5 %, 10 % and 15 % using the poisoned food technique. Neem extract exhibited the highest antifungal activity, with 96 % inhibition at 15 % concentration on the seventh day after inoculation. A dose-dependent inhibitory effect on mycelial growth was observed across all plant extracts. These findings underscore the potential of integrating both microbial and plant-based agents as sustainable alternatives to synthetic fungicides in the management of guava wilt. However, the outcomes are preliminary and necessitate validation through extended field trials to establish practical applicability.

References

  1. 1. Singh G, Singh J, Arya KS. Insights on guava wilt and its different control measures. Arch Phytopathol Plant Prot. 2021;54(1-2):1–14. https://doi.org/10.1080/03235408.2021.1926619
  2. 2. Gopalan C, Rama SBV, Balasubramanian SC. Nutritive value of Indian foods. Hyderabad: National Institute of Nutrition, ICMR; 2004.
  3. 3. Seshadri TR, Vasistha K. Polyphenols of the leaves of Psidium guajava: Quercetin, guaijaverin, leucocyanidin and amritoside. Phytochemistry. 2021;4(6):989–92. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0031-9422(00)86281-0
  4. 4. National Horticulture Board (NHB). Horticulture statistics at a glance. New Delhi: Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare, Government of India; 2022.
  5. 5. Hsieh SPY, Liang WJ, Kao CW, Leu LS. Morphology and physiology characters of Myxosporium psidii, the causal organism of guava wilt. Plant Prot Bull. 1976;18:309–17.
  6. 6. Jhooty JS, Chand JN, Krishnamurthy V. Guava decline in Punjab and Haryana. In: Consolidated report of multifunctional project on guava decline. Ludhiana: Punjab Agricultural University (PAU); 1984. p. 34–41.
  7. 7. Singh SK. Cytogenetics of guava (Psidium guajava L.): The chromosome number of guava (Psidium guajava). J Hortic Sci Biotechnol. 2001;3(6):2–5.
  8. 8. Yadav SV, Nandni S, Singh PK, Singh N. Management of guava wilt in tarai regions of Uttarakhand. J Pharmacogn Phytochem. 2018;7(6):2370–4.
  9. 9. Naz A, Naz H, Ashraf S. Management of guava wilt by biological agent. Int J Agric Food Sci Technol. 2013;4(7):667–70.
  10. 10. Dwivedi KS, Dwivedi N. Antifungal activity of some plant extracts against guava wilt pathogen. Int J Environ Sci. 2012;3(1):412–9. https://doi.org/10.6088/ijes.2012030131040
  11. 11. Noman E, Al-Gheethi AA, Rahman NK, Talip B, Mohamed R, Kadir AO. Single spore isolation as a simple and efficient technique to obtain fungal pure culture. Earth Environ Sci. 2018;140:012055.
  12. 12. Dennis C, Webster J. Antagonistic properties of species groups of Trichoderma-3: Hyphal interactions. Trans Br Mycol Soc. 1971;57:363–9. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0007-1536(71)80050-5
  13. 13. Vincent JM. The esters of 4-hydroxybenzoic acid and related compounds: Part I. Methods for the study of their fungistatic properties. J Soc Chem Ind. 1947;66(5):149–55. https://doi.org/10.1002/jctb.5000660504
  14. 14. Fisher RA, Yates F. Statistical tables for biological, agricultural and medical research. 6th ed. Edinburgh: Oliver and Boyd; 1963. p. 146.
  15. 15. Weindling R. Trichoderma lignorum as a parasite of other fungi. Phytopathology. 1932;22:837–45.
  16. 16. Wells DH. Trichoderma as a biocontrol agent. In: Mukerji KG, Garg KL, editors. Biocontrol of plant diseases. Florida: CRC Press; 1998. p. 73.
  17. 17. Huang X, Chen L, Ran W, Shen Q, Yang X. Trichoderma harzianum strain SQR-T37 and its bio-organic fertilizer could control Rhizoctonia solani damping-off disease in cucumber seedlings mainly by mycoparasitism. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol. 2011;91(3):741–55. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00253-011-3259-6
  18. 18. Sharma V, Salwan R, Sharma PN, Kanwar SS. Elucidation of biocontrol mechanisms of Trichoderma harzianum against different plant fungal pathogens: Universal yet host specific response. Int J Biol Macromol. 2017;95(1):72–9. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2016.11.042
  19. 19. Howell CR. Mechanisms employed by Trichoderma species in the biological control of plant diseases: The history and evolution of current concepts. Plant Dis. 2003;87(1):4–10. https://doi.org/10.1094/PDIS.2003.87.1.4
  20. 20. Mukherjee PK, Horwitz AB, Kenerley MC. Secondary metabolism in Trichoderma: A genomic perspective. Microbiology. 2012;158(1):35–45. https://doi.org/10.1099/mic.0.053629-0
  21. 21. Singh PV, Kumar V, Srivastava S, Kumar A, Singh J. In vitro evaluation of Trichoderma species against Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. lycopersici causing tomato wilt. Plant Pathol J. 2018;17(2):59–64. https://doi.org/10.3923/ppj.2018.59.64
  22. 22. Agbenin NO, Marley SP. In vitro assay of some plant extracts against Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. lycopersici, causal agent of tomato wilt. J Plant Prot Res. 2016;46(3):215–20.
  23. 23. Minz S, Samuel OC, Tripathi CS. The effect of plant extracts on the growth of wilt causing fungi Fusarium oxysporum. J Pharm Biol Sci. 2012;4:13–6.
  24. 24. Garampalli HKR, Ramaiah KA. In vitro antifungal activity of some plant extracts against Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. lycopersici. Asian J Plant Sci Res. 2015;5(1):22–7.
  25. 25. Hazirah NFM, Hamizah O, Natasya WAW. Antifungal activity of Ageratum conyzoides extract against Fusarium oxysporum in Musa sp. Earth Environ Sci. 2023;1182(1):012074. https://doi.org/10.1088/1755-1315/1182/1/012074
  26. 26. Álvarez-Caballero JM, Coy-Barrera E. Chemical and antifungal variability of several accessions of Azadirachta indica A. Juss. from six locations across the Colombian Caribbean coast: Identification of antifungal azadirone limonoids. Plants. 2019;8(12):555. https://doi.org/10.3390/plants8120555

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.