Hindawi Publishing Corporation
Journal of Marine Biology
Volume 2013, Article ID 429850, 10 pages
http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2013/429850
Research Article
Bioagents and Commercial Algae Products as Integrated
Biocide Treatments for Controlling Root Rot Diseases of
Some Vegetables under Protected Cultivation System
Mokhtar M. Abdel-Kader and Nehal S. El-Mougy
Plant Pathology Department, National Research Centre, El-Behouth St., Dokki, 12662 Giza, Egypt
Correspondence should be addressed to Mokhtar M. Abdel-Kader; mokh nrc@yahoo.com
Received 26 April 2013; Revised 6 October 2013; Accepted 25 October 2013
Academic Editor: Jakov Dulˇ ci´ c
Copyright © 2013 M. M. Abdel-Kader and N. S. El-Mougy. Tis is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons
Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is
properly cited.
Integrated commercial blue-green algae extracts and bioagents treatments against vegetables root rot incidence when used as
soil drench under greenhouse and plastic house conditions were evaluated. All applied treatments reduced signifcantly root rot
incidence at both pre- and postemergence growth stages of cucumber, cantaloupe, tomato, and pepper plants compared with
untreated check control. In pot experiment, the obtained results showed that treatments of Trichoderma harzianum or Bacillus
subtilis either alone or combined with commercial algae extracts were signifcantly superior for reducing root rot disease for two
tested vegetable plants compared with the other tested treatments as well as control. It is also observed that rising concentrations of
either algae products, Oligo-X or Weed-Max, were refected in more disease reduction. Promising treatments for controlling root
rot disease incidence were applied under plastic houses conditions. As for feld trails carried out under plastic houses conditions
at diferent locations, the obtained results revealed that the applied combined treatments signifcantly reduced root rot incidence
compared with fungicide and check control treatments. At all locations it was observed that Weed-Max (2g/L) + Bacillus subtilis
signifcantly reduced disease incidence of grown vegetables compared with Oligo-X (2 mL/L) + Trichoderma harzianum treatments.
An obvious yield increase in all treatments was signifcantly higher than in the control. Also, the harvested yield in applied combined
treatments at all locations was signifcantly higher than that in the fungicide and control treatments.
1. Introduction
Vegetable crops are grown worldwide as a source of nutrients
and fber in the human diet. Fungal plant pathogens can cause
devastation in these crops under appropriate environmental
conditions. Root rot in vegetables strikes quickly and then
ruins a whole crop. Several fungi may cause root rot in veg-
etable plants, transmitting the disease through the soil. Some
common fungi include Fusarium, Rhizoctonia, Sclerotinia,
and Pythium, each of which causes a root rot named for the
specifc fungi that cause it. While the presence of one of these
fungi is the primary cause for disease, plants exposed to poor
growing conditions, such as a soil that does not drain well,
are most susceptible to root rot. Te best way to avoid root
rot is by eliminating these contributing causes and practicing
sound cultivation techniques. It was reported that the soil-
borne pathogens Rhizoctonia solani, Pythium ultimum, and
Fusarium spp. can cause severe economic losses to feld and
greenhouse cucumber [1]. Also, Fusarium stem and root rot
on greenhouse long English cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.)
cvs. Bodega and Gardon was observed at four commercial
greenhouses in Leamington, Ontario, Canada. Losses of 25 to
35%, representing 2.5 ha, were noted. Fusarium spp., Rhizoc-
tonia spp., and Pythium spp. were isolated from tomato plants
showing root and crown rot symptoms [2].
Te pathogens, Alternaria solani, Fusarium solani, F. oxys-
porum, Rhizoctonia solani, Sclerotium rolfsii, Macrophomina
phaseolina, and Pythium sp. were isolated from cucumber,
cantaloupe, tomato and Pepper plants grown in plastic
houses and showing root rot disease symptoms [3]. Diferent