Description :

Environmental and consumer concerns have focused interest on the development of biological control agents as an alternative, environmentally-friendly strategy for the protection of agricultural and horticultural crops against phytopathogens. Pseudomonas fluorescens is one such proven biological control agent. Many success reports by several scientists around the world have described different Pseudomonas strains able to significantly control a number of fungal, bacterial and nematode diseases in cereals, horticultural crops, oil seeds and others. The efficacy of bacterial antagonism in controlling diseases was often better than with fungicides. However, the bacterial antagonism in combination with fungicides sometimes improve efficacy in controlling diseases. Besides disease control, treatments also improved seedling health and yields of crops. Peat soil was found to be the best substrate followed by farmyard manure and gobar gas for colonization of Pseudomonas fluorescens. Polysaccharides enhanced the adhesion of Pseudomonas fluorescens. which promoted plant growth through increased antibiotic activity. The present review contributes to future research programmes that aim to promote Pseudomonas fluorescens as a potential bio-pesticide for augmentative biological control of many diseases of agriculture and horticultural importance. However, a better understanding of the factors involved, the signalling interaction among antagonist, pathogen, soil and plants, are yet to be revealed to promote the biocontrol agents as wide applicable bio-pesticides in future.