Biological control of soilborne plant pathogens is a possible alternative to the use of chemical pesticides, which are harmful to the environment. Under greenhouse and field conditions several isolated strains of the fungus Trichoderma have been found to be effective biocontrol agents of various soilborne plant pathogenic fungi. | P. TALLAPRAGADA, M. GUDIMI Turk J Biol 35 (2011) 593-600 © TÜBİTAK doi: Phosphate solubility and biocontrol activity of Trichoderma harzianum Padmavathi TALLAPRAGADA, Madhumathi GUDIMI Department of Microbiology, Center for PG Studies, Jain University, 18/3, 9th Main, Jayanagar 3rd Block, Bangalore, 560011 - INDIA Received: Abstract: Biological control of soilborne plant pathogens is a possible alternative to the use of chemical pesticides, which are harmful to the environment. Under greenhouse and field conditions, several isolated strains of the fungus Trichoderma have been found to be effective biocontrol agents of various soilborne plant pathogenic fungi. The use of phosphate solubilizing microorganisms (PSMs) has a considerable synergistic effect on the growth and development of crop plants. In the present study, T. harzianum was isolated from 10 different agro-climatic zones of Karnataka and tested for the potential of antagonistic activity against the plant pathogen Xanthomonas and the ability of phosphate solubility under in vitro conditions. Variations within the 10 isolates of T. harzianum were assayed using the Rapid Amplification of Polymorphic DNA (RAPD) method. Key words: Trichoderma, biocontrol activity, P solubility, RAPD Introduction Most plant species exploit soil with the help of beneficial microorganisms such as fungi and bacteria, some of which are important in nitrogen fixation and phosphate solubilization. Occurrence and distribution of phosphate solubilizing microorganisms (PSM) have been found in almost all the soils tested, although their populations vary with different soils, climate, and cropping history (1). Trichoderma is a fungus that exists in almost all soils and a wide range of habitats. In soil, they are the most widespread, culturable fungi. They prefer locations with a large supply of plant roots, which they promptly colonize. Additionally, the Trichoderma species attack, parasitize or derive .
