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

Research Articles

Vol. 12 No. sp3 (2025): Advances in Plant Health Improvement for Sustainable Agriculture

Effect of consortia of biocontrol agents and organic amendments in confronting collar rot Sclerotium rolfsii Sacc.) disease in brinjal (Solanum melongena L.) for sustainable cultivation  

DOI
https://doi.org/10.14719/pst.8901
Submitted
20 April 2025
Published
26-08-2025

Abstract

Collar rot, caused by S. rolfsii, is a significant threat to brinjal cultivation in Tamil Nadu. The most virulent isolate of S. rolfsii, identified as IS(VIL)-9, exhibited the highest disease incidence (42.4 %) in field surveys and 92.56 % in pathogenicity tests of our previous studies. The Bacillus spp. and Trichoderma spp. exhibited antagonistic activity against S. rolfsii. Aqueous extracts of various oil cakes including neem, pungam, mahua, castor and cotton were prepared and tested for their antifungal efficacy against S. rolfsii. Among the oil cake extracts, neem oil cake (10 %) exhibited the highest inhibition of S. rolfsii growth (81.11 %), followed by mahua oil cake (76.66 %), pungam oil cake (57.77 %), castor oil cake (34.44 %) and cotton oil cake (18.88 %). In addition, a pot culture experiment was conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of combined applications of biocontrol agents and organic amendments against collar rot disease. Ten treatments were tested, including combinations of Bacillus sp., Trichoderma sp. and neem cake. Bacillus sp., Trichoderma sp. and neem oil cake are compatible with one another in the in vitro assay. Among the various integrated treatments, the combined application of both biocontrol agents, Bacillus sp. and Trichoderma sp., with neem cake (T8) reduced the disease incidence to 14.59 %. The control pots with only S. rolfsii inoculation showed a disease incidence of 80.60 %. This study demonstrated that the integrated use of biocontrol agents and organic amendments such as neem cake and oil cake extracts significantly reduces the incidence of collar rot caused by S. rolfsii in brinjal cultivation providing an eco-friendly alternative to chemical control.

References

  1. 1. Indiastat. 2019. Available at: https://www.indiastat.com.
  2. 2. Siddique MAB, Meah MB, Siddiqua MK, Rahim MA, Haque MM. Response of ten brinjal varieties to foot rot caused by Sclerotium rolfsii. Bangladesh J Plant Pathol. 2002;18(1/2):77-81.
  3. 3. Dwivedi SK, Prasad G. Integrated management of Sclerotium rolfsii: an overview. Eur J Biomed Pharm Sci. 2016;3(11):137-46.
  4. 4. Mathur SB, Sarbhoy AK. Biological control of sclerotium root rot of sugarbeet. Indian Phytopathol. 1978;31(3):365-7.
  5. 5. Barakat RM, Al-Mahareeq F, Al-Masri MI. Biological control of Sclerotium rolfsii by using indigenous Trichoderma spp. isolates from Palestine. Hebron Univ Res J. 2006;2(2):27-47.
  6. 6. Guzmán-Valle P, Bravo-Luna L, Montes-Belmont R, Guigón-López C, Sepúlveda-Jiménez G. Induction of resistance to Sclerotium rolfsii in different varieties of onion by inoculation with Trichoderma asperellum. Eur J Plant Pathol. 2014;138:223-9. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10658-013-0336-y
  7. 7. Abd-Allah EF. Effect of a Bacillus subtilis isolate on southern blight (Sclerotium rolfsii) and lipid composition of peanut seeds. Phytoparasitica. 2005;33(5):460-6. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02981395
  8. 8. Nalisha I, Muskhazli M, Nor Farizan T. Production of bioactive compounds by Bacillus subtilis against Sclerotium rolfsii. Malays J Microbiol. 2006;2(2):19-23. https://doi.org/10.21161/mjm.220604
  9. 9. Suryawanshi AP, Borgaonkar AS, Kuldhar DP, Dey U. Integrated management of collar rot (Sclerotium rolfsii) of brinjal (Solanum melongena). Indian Phytopathol. 2015;68(2):189-95.
  10. 10. Harlapur SI. Studies on some aspects of foot rot of wheat caused by Sclerotium rolfsii Sacc. [MSc thesis]. Dharwad: University of Agricultural Sciences; 1988.
  11. 11. De Curtis F, Lima G, Vitullo D, De Cicco V. Biocontrol of Rhizoctonia solani and Sclerotium rolfsii on tomato by delivering antagonistic bacteria through a drip irrigation system. Crop Prot. 2010;29(7):663-70. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cropro.2010.01.012
  12. 12. Suneeta P, Aiyanathan K, Arutkani E, Nakkeeran S. Efficacy of Bacillus spp. in the management of collar rot of Gerbera under protected cultivation. Res Crops. 2016;17(4):745–52. https://doi.org/10.5958/2348-7542.2016.00126.1
  13. 13. Shifa H, Gopalakrishnan C, Velazhahan R. Characterization of antifungal antibiotics produced by Bacillus subtilis G1 antagonistic to Sclerotium rolfsii. Biochem Cell Arch. 2015;15(1):99–104.
  14. 14. Ramamoorthy V, Alice D, Meena B, Muthusamy M, Seetharaman K. Biological management of sclerotium wilt of jasmine. Indian J Plant Prot. 2000;28(1):102–4.
  15. 15. Anitha CK, Rajaram RD, Chandrasekhara RK, Bhupal RT, Prabhakar RI. Integrated management of sclerotial wilt disease of bell pepper (Capsicum annuum L.). Indian J Plant Prot. 2000;28(1):15–8.
  16. 16. Johnson M, Subramanyam K, Balaguravaiah D, John SM. Management of stem rot in groundnut through soil amendments. Ann Plant Prot Sci. 2003;11(1):83–5.
  17. 17. Abinaya A, Kalpana K, Ebenezar EG, Thiruvudainambi S, Theradimani M, Arunkumar R. Evaluation of antagonistic potential of Bacillus spp. and Trichoderma spp. against Sclerotium rolfsii Sacc. causing collar rot disease in Solanum melongena L. Int J Curr Mic robiol App Sci. 2020;9(12):694–703. https://doi.org/10.20546/ijcmas.2020.912.083
  18. 18. Jha AK, Dubey SC, Jha DK. Evaluation of different leaf extracts and oil cakes against Macrophomina phaseolina causing collar rot of okra. J Res Birsa Agric Univ. 2000;12(2):225–8.
  19. 19. Schmitz H. Poisoned food technique. Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Analytical Edition 1930; 2(4): 361–363.
  20. 20. Dennis C, Webster J. Antagonistic properties of species-groups of Trichoderma: I. Production of non-volatile antibiotics. Trans Br Mycol Soc. 1971;57(1):25–39. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0007-1536(71)80077-3
  21. 21. Gomez KA, Gomez AA. Statistical procedures for agricultural research. 2nd ed. New York: John Wiley and Sons. 1984;680.
  22. 22. Hirpara DG, Gajera HP, Hirpara HZ, Golakiya BA. Antipathy of Trichoderma against Sclerotium rolfsii Sacc.: evaluation of cell wall-degrading enzymatic activities and molecular diversity analysis of antagonists. J Mol Microbiol Biotechnol. 2017;27(1):22–8. https://doi.org/10.1159/000452997
  23. 23. Bosah O, Igeleke CA, Omorusi VI. In vitro microbial control of pathogenic Sclerotium rolfsii. Int J Agric Biol. 2010;12(3):474-6.
  24. 24. Suriyagamon S, Phonkerd N, Bunyatratchata W, Riddech N, Mongkolthanaruk W. Compost seed of Trichoderma harzianum UD12-102 in controlling collar and stem rot of tomato caused by Sclerotium rolfsii. Environ Nat Resour J. 2018;16(2):20–8.
  25. 25. Aparna KP, Girija VK. Efficacy of plant oils and oil cakes against Rhizoctonia solani Kuhn causing collar rot and web blight of cowpea under in-vitro conditions. Int J Curr Microbiol Appl Sci. 2018;7(1):2091–8. https://doi.org/10.20546/ijcmas.2018.701.252
  26. 26. Singh SR, Prajapati RK, Srivastava SSL, Pandey RK, Gupta PK. Evaluation of different botanicals and non-target pesticides against Sclerotium rolfsii causing collar rot of lentil. Indian Phytopathol. 2007;60(4):499–501.
  27. 27. Paramasivan M, Mohan S, Muthukrishnan N, Chandrasekaran A. Degradation of oxalic acid (OA) producing Sclerotium rolfsii (Sacc.) by organic biocides. Arch Phytopathol Plant Protect. 2013;46(3):357–63. https://doi.org/10.1080/03235408.2012.740983
  28. 28. Chen L, Wu YD, Chong XY, Xin QH, Wang DX, Bian K. Seed-borne endophytic Bacillus velezensis LHSB1 mediate the biocontrol of peanut stem rot caused by Sclerotium rolfsii. J Appl Microbiol. 2020;128(3):803–13. https://doi.org/10.1111/jam.14508
  29. 29. Gnanaprakash S, Raja IY, Manonmani K, Balasubramanian P. Integrated strategies for the management of root rot disease of medicinal coleus (Coleus forskohlii Briq.) incited by Macrophomina phaseolina (Tassi.) Goid. Acta Hortic. 2019;1241:507–14. https://doi.org/10.17660/ActaHortic.2019.1241.75
  30. 30. Biswas KK, Sen C. Management of stem rot of groundnut caused by Sclerotium rolfsii through Trichoderma harzianum. Indian Phytopathol. 2000;53(3):290–5.
  31. 31. Deshmukh MA, Gade RM, Belkar YK, Koche MD. Efficacy of bioagents, biofertilizers and soil amendments to manage root rot in greengram. Legume Res. 2016;39(1):140–4. https://doi.org/10.18805/lr.v0iOF.6772
  32. 32. Daunde AT. Integrated management of collar rot of chilli caused by Sclerotium rolfsii Sacc. [PhD thesis]. Parbhani: Vasantrao Naik Marathwada Krishi Vidyapeeth; 2018..
  33. 33. Adandonon A, Aveling TAS, Labuschagne N, Tamo M. Biocontrol agents in combination with Moringa oleifera extract for integrated control of Sclerotium-caused cowpea damping-off and stem rot. Eur J Plant Pathol. 2006;115409–18. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10658-006-9031-6
  34. 34. Basamma M. Integrated management of sclerotium wilt of potato caused by Sclerotium rolfsii Sacc. [MSc (Ag) thesis]. Dharwad: University of Agricultural Sciences. 2008.
  35. 35. Latha P, Anand T, Prakasam V, Jonathan EI, Paramathma M, Samiyappan R. Combining Pseudomonas, Bacillus and Trichoderma strains with organic amendments and micronutrient to enhance suppression of collar and root rot disease in physic nut. Appl Soil Ecol. 2011;49:215–23. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apsoil.2011.05.003
  36. 36. Maheswari MPU, Muthusamy M, Alice D. Evaluation of antagonists against jasmine wilt caused by Sclerotium rolfsii Sacc. J Biol Control. 2002;16(2):135–40.
  37. 37. Gholami M, Khakvar R, Niknam G. Introduction of some new endophytic bacteria from Bacillus and Streptomyces genera as successful biocontrol agents against Sclerotium rolfsii. Arch Phytopathol Plant Protect. 2013;47(1):122–30. https://doi.org/10.1080/03235408.2013.805043
  38. 38. Sahu PK, Singh S, Gupta A, Singh UB, Brahmaprakash GP, Saxena A. Antagonistic potential of bacterial endophytes and induction of systemic resistance against collar rot pathogen Sclerotium rolfsii in tomato. Biol Control. 2019;137:104014. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocontrol.2019.104014
  39. 39. Panth M, Hassler SC, Baysal-Gurel F. Methods for management of soilborne diseases in crop production. Agriculture. 2020;10(1):16. https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture10010016

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.