Effect of Ulvan on the Biocontrol Activity of <i>Debaryomyces hansenii</i> and <i>Stenotrophomonas rhizophila</i> against Fruit Rot of <i>Cucumis melo</i> L.

Abstract

In the present study, the following was investigated: (a) The effect of ulvan on in vivo and in vitro biocontrol of Debaryomyces hansenii and Stenotrophomonas rhizophila against Fusarium proliferaum and (b) the effect of ulvan on in vivo and in vitro growth of D. hansenii and S. rhizophila and muskmelon quality parameters. The results showed that the biocontrol activity of D. hansenii and S. rhizophila could be enhanced by ulvan (5 g/L). The combination of ulvan and S. rhizophila resulted in a more effective control of fruit rot in comparison to fungicide benomyl. On in vitro growth of F. proliferatum, individual treatments of D. hansenii and S. rhizophila inhibited spore germination and mycelial growth with no statistical difference with the combined treatments. Ulvan does not have a direct effect on the in vivo and in vitro growth of D. hansenii and S. rhizophila. Furthermore, the combined treatments improve the natural disease incidence and quality parameters like weight, firmness, total soluble solids (TSS), and pH. These results suggest that the use of ulvan may be an effective method to improve the biological activity of D. hansenii and S. rhizophila.

Keywords

• biocontrol
• <i>Debaryomyces hansenii</i>
• <i>Stenotrophomonas rhizophila</i>
• ulvan
• muskmelon
• <i>Fusarium</i> spp.