Trichoderma spp.: Isolation in culture; Molecular diagnosis (PCR); Species molecular identification (sequencing).
Information 2011-03-30.
Trichoderma spp. belongs to a genus of filamentous fungi, Deuteromycota (or Deuteromycetes), imperfect fungi (no sexual way). Trichoderma species can be found as an abundant component of the microflora of all soils. Not usually found in live plants and is not related to plant diseases. Only found a very aggressive strain that causes disease in mushrooms.
Colonies of Trichoderma grow rapidly on malt extract agar, giving a yellow-greenish color to dark green by the formation of conidia. They grow well at 30 ° C, but there are strains that develop even at 0 ° C.
Trichoderma harzianum has been shown to be very effective as a biological control agent. Both species of Trichoderma and other fungi may be used for biological control of fungal plant diseases due to Botrytis cinerea, Rhizoctonia solani, Sclerotinia minor, Fusarium oxysporum, Sclerotium rolfsee, Pythium spp., Phytophthora spp., Colletotrichum spp..
There is no known mechanism by which only Trichoderma harzianum can inhibit the development of plant pathogenic fungi. Competitive mechanisms, antibiosis Mycoparasitism and may be more or less important depending on a pathogen or other. T. harzianum is known to produce enzymes degrading cell wall of fungi, such as b-1,3-glucanase and various chitinolytic enzymes. Some of these enzymes inhibit conidial germination and hyphal elongation in vitro. They have experimented with transformation of plants with genes that produce chitin degrading enzymes for making these resistant plants pathogenic fungi.
Trichoderma spp. It is completely safe for humans and animals.
The most appropriate way to incorporate Trichoderma spp. to soil is through fertilizers. A good fertilizer contains trillions of microorganisms, many of whose metabolites are necessary for the development of Trichoderma spp. A fertilizer inoculated with Trichoderma spp. It will provide enormous number of soil fungal protectors.