Growth Promotion and Bi-Control Approaches of Brown Root Rot Disease of Tea by Pseudomonas Aeruginosa(PM 105)

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.