Biocontrol Potential and Growth Effect of Vesicular Arbuscular Mycorrhiza Root Inoculant (VAMRI) on Allium cepa L. Bulb Infected with Fusarium oxysporum f sp. cepae

Abstract

Vesicular Arbuscular Mycorrhiza Root Inoculant or VAMRI has gained its popularity as both biofertilizer and biocontrol agent of soil-bome diseases of various crops at any given condition. This study was conducted to determine the biocontrol potential and growth effect of VAMRI on Allium cepa L., an economically important crop, infected with Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cepae grown in two soil types. One way ANOVA in a CRD design was used with VAMRI treatment, F. oxysporum £ sp. cepae treatment, and soil type as the independent factors and the growth parameters as the dependent factors. Duncan5s Multiple Range Test (DMRT) at a = 0.05 was used to determine statistical difference between treatments. The results showed that there was no significant difference in the effect of VAM and non-VAM as growth enhancer and biocontrol agent. The significant difference was only between treatments in plant fresh weight, both in garden and acidic soil, plant height, bulb number, and dry matter yield of shoot and bulb, in acidic soil only and not between VAM and non-VAM. Despite these significant differences, VAMRI has no growth enhancing effect in native onion bulb. And although there was 100% infection on VAM-treated plants, VAMRI still did not significantly protect the onions from the F. oxysporum £ sp. cepae pathogen in either soil type due to the infection of indigenous VAM in soil of non-mycorrhizal treated onion bulbs.