Abstract:
Pseudomonas aeruginosa (PM 105) isolated from tea (Camellia sinensis) plantation soil of Barak Valley, Assam,
(India) showed biocontrol and growth promotion potential against the tea root pathogen Fomes lamoensis, infested
one year old tea plants under nursery condition. In the in vitro antagonism study, PM 105 showed significant inhibition
in all the three media (KB, NA and PDA) tested against the pathogen, both in spot and line inoculation. In the nursery
experiment, tea plants treated with F. lamoensis alone showed 73% disease incidence, whereas in P. aeruginosa
along with the pathogen showed reduced percentage of disease incidence (only 33.33%). An increase in number of
new leaves (NNL), number of lateral branches (NLB), shoot height (SH) and root length (RL) was observed, following
the application of the bacterial treatment. It was also observed the fresh weight of shoot (FWS), and root (FWR), dry
weight of shoot (DWS), and root (DWR), chlorophyll a and b in P. aeruginosatreated plants, have also increased.
The results indicate the biocontrol and plant growth promoting potentials of P. aeruginosaon tea.
