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ARS Home » Plains Area » El Reno, Oklahoma » Oklahoma and Central Plains Agricultural Research Center » Livestock, Forage and Pasture Management Research Unit » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #397309
Research Project: Integrated Agroecosystem Research to Enhance Forage and Food Production in the Southern Great Plains

Location: Livestock, Forage and Pasture Management Research Unit

Title: Interacting effects of botanicals, biocontrol agents, and potting media on Rhizoctonia solani led damping-off of okra seedlings

Author
item BHATTARAI, ANUGYA - Agriculture And Forestry University(AFU)
item SHARMA, AMRIT - Agriculture And Forestry University(AFU)
item YADAV, RITESH - Agriculture And Forestry University(AFU)
item Wagle, Pradeep

Submitted to: Journal of Agriculture and Food Research
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 9/30/2022
Publication Date: 10/4/2022
Citation: Bhattarai, A., Sharma, A., Yadav, R.K., Wagle, P. 2022. Interacting effects of botanicals, biocontrol agents, and potting media on Rhizoctonia solani led damping-off of okra seedlings. Journal of Agriculture and Food Research. 10. Article 100410.. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jafr.2022.100410.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jafr.2022.100410

Interpretive Summary: Damping-off leads to the decay of germinating seeds and young seedlings of okra, which is one of the most important yield constraints both in nurseries and fields. In this study, we investigated the interacting effects of botanicals, biocontrol agents, and potting media against the Rhizoctonia solani led damping-off in okra. The treatments included different combinations of extracts of five botanicals (wood apple/Indian bael – Aeglemar melos L., Neem – Azadirachta indica A. Juss, Turmeric - Curcuma longa L., Ginger - Zingiber officinale Roscoe, and Onion - Allium cepa L.) and two biocontrol agents (Pseudomonas fluorescens and Trichoderma viride) as first factors and two potting media [vermicompost with soil and farm yard manure (FYM) with soil] as the second factor in a completely randomized design, with 42 treatments and 4 replications. The seeds were sown after pathogen inoculation. We recorded okra seedling health for the first 16 days after seed sowing. Pseudomonas seed treatment and Pseudomonas + Onion seed treatment were most effective for controlling R. solani led damping-off in okra. Almost all the combinations of wood apple extracts showed inhibitory effects on seed germination and seedling growth. Germination Index (GI) was better under FYM substrates (0.32) than Vermicompost (0.23). The GI was greatest in Pseudomonas seed treatment (0.53) followed by Pseudomonas + Onion seed treatment (0.51). Similarly, Dickson Quality Index (DQI – greater value indicates better seedling quality) was greatest for Pseudomonas + Neem seed treatment. No significant interaction was observed between the substrates and biocontrol agents for any studied parameters.

Technical Abstract: The interacting effects of botanicals, biocontrol agents, and potting media against the Rhizoctonia solani led damping-off in okra (Abelmoschus esculentus L.) were investigated. The treatments comprised of different combinations of extracts of five botanicals (wood apple/Indian bael – Aeglemar melos L., Neem – Azadirachta indica A. Juss, Turmeric - Curcuma longa L., Ginger - Zingiber officinale Roscoe, and Onion - Allium cepa L.) and two biocontrol agents (Pseudomonas fluorescens and Trichoderma viride) as first factors and two potting media [vermicompost with soil and farm yard manure (FYM) with soil] as the second factor in a completely randomized design with 42 treatments and 4 replications. The seeds were sown after pathogen inoculation. Okra seedling health was recorded daily for the first 16 days after sowing. The least percentage (34.38%) of pre-emergence damping-off was observed with Pseudomonas seed treatment and Pseudomonas + Onion seed treatment. Almost all the combinations of wood apple extracts showed inhibitory effects on seed germination and growth of seedlings. The greatest number of days for the onset of post-emergence damping-off was recorded with Pseudomonas + Onion seed treatment (14.88 days) followed by Pseudomonas seed treatment (14.13 days). Germination Index (GI) was better for FYM (0.32) than Vermicompost substrates (0.23). The GI was greatest in Pseudomonas seed treatment (0.53) followed by Pseudomonas + Onion seed treatment (0.51). Similarly, Dickson Quality Index (DQI) was greatest for Pseudomonas + Neem seed treatment (0.0015), with a greater value of DQI indicating better seedling quality. No significant interaction was observed between the substrates and biocontrol agents for any studied parameters. Pseudomonas + Onion seed treatment and Pseudomonas soil treatment were most effective for controlling R. solani led damping-off in okra.