Effect of Actinobacteria on the Growth and Manifestation of Biotic Stress in Chilli (Capsicum annuum L.)
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Date
2018-07
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University of Agricultural Sciences, Dharwad
Abstract
ABSTRACT
Actinobacteria are Gram positive, filamentous, sporulating, heterotrophic prokaryotic bacteria. They are known for degradation of organic materials, production of plant growth promoting substances and reduction in the population of pest and disease. Hence, the present study was conducted to isolate actinobacteria, test their multifunctional activities and performance on the growth and manifestation of biotic stress in chilli crop under pot culture at the Department of Agricultural Microbiology, University of Agricultural Sciences, Dharwad, Karnataka during 2017-2018.
Soil samples collected from different locations were subjected to the isolation of actinobacteria by standard dilution and plating on Starch Casein Agar (SCA). A total of 52 isolates were purified and used to understand the influence on the growth parameters of chilli. Out of 52, five actinobacterial isolates were selected based on their positive influence on germination percentage, seedling vigour index, shoot length, root length, fresh weight and dry weight of seedlings. The selected five isolates exhibited multifunctional activities such as IAA production, GA production, antagonistic activity against fungal pathogens and reduction of biotic stress. The five efficient actinobacterial isolates along with five reference isolates were also employed to study their influence on the growth parameters, population of sucking pests (thrips, mites, aphids and whiteflies), disease (murda complex) and yield parameters of chilli plants under greenhouse conditions. Streptomyces shandonggensis AUDT 217 was the most promising isolate followed by AUDT 811 in terms of production of plant growth promoting substances, antagonistic activity against fungal pathogens (Sclerotium rolfsii and Colletotricum capsici), growth parameters, soil enzymatic activities, nutrient content, uptake and alleviation of sucking pests (thrips, mites, aphids and whiteflies) and disease (murda complex) in chilli.