Abstract
The agents studied included three commercial plant-derived preparations (Tillecur, Milsana and Quillaja), water extracts of different plant parts from 11 plant species, the active microbial ingredients of three commercial microbial products (Bacillus amyloliquefaciens strains MBI 600 and QST 713; Trichoderma harzianum strain T 39) and seven other experimental microorganisms. In the first step, the effect on the germination of teliospores of Sporisorium sorghi was evaluated on agar media. The observed antifungal activity was particularly pronounced for Quillaja, the water extracts from walnut, rhubarb, garlic, and Tillecur and the culture filtrates of Streptomyces (one isolate), Bacillus (two isolates) and Trichoderma (two isolates). In pot tests with sorghum grains inoculated with S. sorghi, full control of kernel smut was obtained by seed treatment with Tillecur, Quillaja and T. harzianum T39. In two field experiments, seed treatment with these preparations and with a second isolate of T. harzianum provided 84–100% control of the disease. In the pot tests, the level of control was assessed not only based on the presence of infected panicles at maturity but also using diagnostic microscopy and PCR of young plants. The results obtained with the different methods were in very good agreement. It is concluded that diagnosis of young plants by microscopy or PCR can significantly speed up screenings for new seed treatments with activity against covered kernel smut. Assuming that only agents with a high level of efficacy are of interest for further development, examination of a relatively small number of plants should yield sufficiently accurate data to identify promising candidates.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Agarwal SK, Singh SS, Verma S, Kumar S (2000) Antifungal activity of anthraquinone derivatives from Rheum emodi. J Ethnopharmacol 72(1):43–46
Bengtsson M, Wulff E, Jørgensen HL, Pham A, Lübeck M, Hockenhull J (2009) Comparative studies on the effects of a yucca extract and acibenzolar-S-methyl (ASM) on inhibition of Venturia inaequalis in apple leaves. Eur J Plant Pathol 124(2):187–198
Borgen A, Davanlou M (2001) Biological control of common bunt (Tilletia tritici). J Crop Prod 3(1):157–171
Botros SE, Saeed FA, Mohamed MS, El-Zawahry AM (1994) Biological and chemical control of covered kernel smut of sorghum (Sorghum bicolor (Linn.) Moench.). Assiut J Agric Sci 25(1):233–247
D’Addabbo T, Curto G, Greco P, Di Silvestro D, Coiro MI et al (2005) Preliminary trials with extracts of Quillaja saponaria Molina for the control of root-knot nematodes. Nematol Mediterr 33:29–34
El-Helaly AF, Ibrahim IA (1957) Host-parasite relationship of Sphacelotheca sorghi on sorghum. Phytopathology 47:620–623
Fernández-Agulló A, Pereira E, Freire MS, Valentao P, Andrade PB, González-Álvarez J, Pereira JA (2013) Influence of solvent on the antioxidant and antimicrobial properties of walnut (Juglans regia L.) green husk extracts. Ind Crops Prod 42:126–132
Frederiksen RA, Odvody GN (2000) Compendium of sorghum diseases, 2nd edn. APS Press, St. Paul, p 129
Gomez KA, Gomez AA (1984) Statistical procedures for agricultural research, 2PndP edn. Willey, New York, p 680
Gwary DM, Bdliya BS, Bwatanglang N (2009) Integration of fungicides, crop varieties and sowing dates for the management of sorghum smuts in Nigerian Savanna. Arch Phytopathol Plant Prot 42(10):988–999
Hasan MM, Rahman SME, Kim GH, Abdallah E, Oh DH (2012) Antagonistic potentiality of Trichoderma harzianum towards seed-borne fungal pathogens of winter wheat cv. protiva in vitro and in vivo. J Microbiol Biotechnol 22(5):585–591
Hassan SM, Byrd JA, Cartwright AL, Bailey CA (2010) Hemolytic and antimicrobial activities differ among saponin-rich extracts from guar, quillaja, yucca, and soybean. Appl Biochem Biotechnol 162(4):1008–1017
Koch E, Weil B, Wächter R, Wohlleben S, Spiess H, Krauthausen HJ (2006) Evaluation of selected microbial strains and commercial alternative products as seed treatments for the control of Tilletia tritici, Fusarium culmorum, Drechslera graminea and D. teres. J Plant Dis Prot 113(4):150–158
Koch E, Enders M, Ullrich C, Molitor D, Berkelmann-Löhnertz B (2013) Effect of Primula root and other plant extracts on infection structure formation of Phyllosticta ampelicida (asexual stage of Guignardia bidwellii) and on black rot disease of grapevine in the greenhouse. J Plant Dis Prot 120(1):26–33
Lukanowski A (2006) Alternative methods of seed treatment against common bunt of wheat. Phytopatol Polon 41:79–82
Masum MMI, Islam SMM, Fakir MGA (2009) Effect of seed treatment practices in controlling of seed-borne fungi in sorghum. Sci Res Essays 4(1):022–027
Mathad RC, Shakuntala NM, Vasudevan SN, Naik MN, Patil SB (2013) The anti-fungal properties of aqueous extracts from Psorolea corylifolia Linn. seeds in controlling grain smut and seed quality enhancement of sorghum. The Bioscan 8(2):685–687
McManus PS, Ravenscroft AV, Fulberight DW (1993) Inhibition of Tilletia laevis teliospore germination and suppression of common bunt of wheat by Pseudmonas fluorescens 2-79. Plant Dis 77:1012–1015
Moharam MHA, Leclerque A, Koch E (2012) Cultural characteristics of Sporisorium sorghi and detection of the pathogen in plant tissue by microscopy and polymerase chain reaction. Phytoparasitica 40(5):475–483
Munkacsi AB, Stoxen S, May G (2007) Domestication of maize, sorghum, and sugarcane did not drive the divergence of their smut pathogens. Evolution 61:388–403
Pelah D, Abramovich Z, Markus A, Wiesman Z (2002) The use of commercial saponin from Quillaja saponaria bark as a larvicidal agent against Aedes aegypti and Culex pipiens. J Ethnopharm 81:407–409
Perelló A, Gruhlke M, Slusarenko AJ (2013) Effect of garlic extract on seed germination, seedling health, and vigour of pathogen-infested wheat. J Plant Prot Res 53(4):317–323
Ribera A, Cotoras M, Zúñiga GE (2008) Effect of extracts from in vitro-grown shoots of Quillaja saponaria Mol. on Botrytis cinerea Pers. World J Microbiol Biotechnol 24(9):1803
Roberti R, Flori P, Pisi A, Brunelli A, Cesari A (2000) Evaluation of biological seed treatment of wheat for the control of seed-borne Fusarium culmorum[Bewertung biologischer Behandlungen gegen Sameninfektionen an Weizen verursacht durch den pilzlichen Erreger Fusarium culmorum]. J Plant Dis Prot [Z Pflanzenkrankh Pflanzenschutz] 107:484–493
Sajjan AS, Patil BB, Jamadar MM, Patil SB (2011) Management of grain smut in seed production of rabi sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench]—a review. Agric Rev 32:202–208
Sisay A, Abebe F, Wako K (2012) Evaluation of three potential botanicals against sorghum covered smut (Sphacelotheca sorghi) at Bako, Western Oromia Ethiopia. Afr J Plant Sci 6(8):226–231
Sotelo T, Lema M, Soengas P, Cartea ME, Velasco P (2015) In vitro activity of glucosinolates and their degradation products against Brassica-pathogenic bacteria and fungi. Appl Environ Microbiol 81(1):432–440
Tabo R, Olabanji OG, Ajayi O, Flower DJ (2002) Effect of plant population density on the growth and yield of sorghum varieties grown on a vertisol. Afr Crop Sci J 10(1):31–38
Tegegne G, Pretorius JC, Swart WJ (2008) Antifungal properties of Agapanthus africanus L. extracts against plant pathogens. Crop Prot 27(7):1052–1060
Waldow F, Jahn M (2007) Investigations in the regulation of common bunt (Tilletia tritici) of winter wheat with regard to threshold values, cultivar susceptibility and non-chemical protection measures. J Plant Dis Prot 114(6):269–275
Wianowska D, Garbaczewska S, Cieniecka-Roslonkiewicz A, Dawidowicz AL, Jankowska A (2016) Comparison of antifungal activity of extracts from different Juglans regia cultivars and juglone. Microb Pathog 100:263–267
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Conflict of interest
Moustafa H. A. Moharam, Stephan Dietrich and Eckhard Koch declare that they have no conflict of interest.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Moharam, M.H.A., Stephan, D. & Koch, E. Evaluation of plant-derived preparations and microorganisms as seed treatments for control of covered kernel smut of sorghum (Sporisorium sorghi). J Plant Dis Prot 125, 159–166 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s41348-017-0123-7
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s41348-017-0123-7