Abstract:
Mango (Mangifera indicaL.) is considered as one of the most popular fruits among
millions of people in the tropical area and increasingly in the developed countries.
Anthracnose, caused by the fungusColletotrichum gloeosporioides, is the most
important pre- and post-harvest disease of mango. The objective of this research was
to evaluate the prevalence of different promising antagonistic Trichoderma and
Bacillusspp. on phyloplane of mango in Ethiopia and to evaluate their antagonistic
potential against the pathogen. A total of 19 mango fields were surveyed and
anthracnose affected allfields. Culture studies on potato dextrose agar for evaluation
of antibiosis activity ofTrichodermaspp. and Bacillusspp. revealed that they have
inhibitory and lytic effect on C. gloeosporioides, which is an indication of their
potential biocontrol agent for management of mango anthracnose as an alternative to
chemical control. Significant differences (p< 0.05) were observed amongBacillus
isolates in causing lysis of pathogen mycelium, when inoculated on actively growing
colony ofC. gloeosporioides. Maximum reduction in growth rate of pathogen was
observed withBacillusspp. (B50), which restricted the growth to 2.7 mm compared
to 8.3 mm in the control with 67.5% efficacies. There were similar effects (p< 0.05)
among Trichoderma spp. in formation of inhibition zones and lysis by varying
degrees up to 59.7% efficacies in reducing linear growth of the pathogen in dual
culture.
