Biological suppression of Meloidogyne incognita in Coleus forskohlii using Pasteuria penetrans oil dispersion formulation
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.14719/pst.7135Keywords:
Biocontrol, Coleus forskohlii, oil dispersion formulation, Pasteuria penetrans, root-knot nematodeAbstract
Medicinal coleus (Coleus forskohlii) is an important herbal plant in Indian medicine. Root-knot nematode, Meloidogyne incognita, is the predominant pest of medicinal coleus and causes a yield reduction of up to 72%. This nematode affects the medicinal properties of tubers by producing root-knot galls. Chemical nematicides are unsuitable because the molecule forskolin, extracted from the tubers, could be contaminated. Hence, biological control is the preferred solution to prevent issues associated with pesticide residues. Pasteuria penetrans is a potential antagonistic bacterium of M. incognita. In this study, an oil dispersion formulation (ODF) of P. penetrans was developed and its effectiveness against M. incognita was tested. The formulation was water soluble and the spores were viable even after 60 days of incubation, as confirmed through juvenile parasitisation. Various concentrations of this formulation were prepared and screened against M. incognita infection in C. forskohlii under glasshouse conditions. Soil drenching with the formulation at a rate of 400 µL in 1000 mL of water resulted in an 86% reduction in egg mass production. P. penetrans endospores were recovered from treated plants. Based on these results, field trials were conducted over two seasons. The findings demonstrated that the application of ODF @ 4 L/ha in 200 L of water significantly reduced nematode infection, with 74.9%-84.8% and 61%- 66.5% reductions in egg mass production and gall index, respectively. Furthermore, the treatment enhanced tuber weight, with an increase of 32.9%-55.5% compared to carbofuran-treated plants.
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Copyright (c) 2025 N Swarnakumari, I Geethalakshmi , S Dharani, A Arulsia

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