BIOLOGICAL SEED TREATMENT OF CORN WITH MYCOPATHOGENIC FUNGI

Mycopathogenic fungi, Exobasidiellum sp., Gliocladium roseum, Gonatobotrys simplex, Sphaeronaemella helvellae, and Trichothecium roseum were tested and selected for their efficacy as biocontrol agents of seed- and soil-borne fungi colonizing corn (Zea mays) kernels, and for their interaction with different corn genotypes. Kernels of inbred corn lines were coated with conidial suspension of mycopathogens and germinated in seed germinators and greenhouse bench sand. Treatment with mycopathogens increased germination and seedling dry weight, reduced colonization of germinated kernels by seed- and soil-borne fungi, reduced infection of seedlings by pathogenic fungi and resulted in interaction with corn genotype. Gliocladium roseum was the most effective biocontrol agent of corn seed in this study.