Effectiveness of the chemical stabilizers of Talaromyces flavus in biological control of tomato and greenhouse cucumber vascular wilt disease

Fungal antagonist, Talaromyces flavus, is one of the most important biological agents of soil-borne fungal diseases including Verticillium and Fusarium wilt. In this study, to increase the effectiveness of T. flavus isolates obtained from greenhouse cucumbers and field grown tomatoes five chemical stabilizers were evaluated. Based on the results of previous studies, the most effective substrate for the growth, sporulation and stability of T. flavus isolates related to the above-mentioned plants was a mix of rice bran and peat-moss. Different chemical stabilizers were mixed with the above-mentioned substrate containing spore suspensions of various T. flavus isolates. For each plant, a completely randomized experiment was conducted under greenhouse conditions with seven treatments and three replications. The results of this study indicated that treatments containing sodium nitrate and D-cycloserine were more effective than those containing other stabilizers. The overall results of this study suggest that the use of some chemical stabilizers may enhance the biocontrol potential of fungal antagonists in controlling different plant diseases including Verticillium and Fusarium wilt.