Bio-intervention in Tea Disease Management: Recent Approaches and Future Opportunities

Abstract

Disease management in tea, using chemical fungicides alone is prohibitive due to environmental and health concern. Application of new generation fungicides at recommended doses along with microbial biocontrol agents and botanicals have enough potential in tea disease management. Microbial biocides such as Trichoderma viride, T. harzianum, Aspergillus niger, Bacillus subtilis, B. pumilus, Azotobacter chrococcum, Azospirillum brazilense, Pseudomonas corrugata, Streptomyces nojiriensis etc. (@ 2, 5 and 10% spore concentrations), along with aqueous extracts of botanicals like Amphineuron opulentum, Cleome gynandra, Ipomea convolvulus, Polygonum hydropiper etc., showed significant success against the red rust and Fusarium die back infestation (up to 78.2%). The two diseases which hav e off late became widespread in north-east India quite often believed to be due to climate change and heavy dependence on chemicals. This approach provides scope to develop sustainable practices in tea ecosystem against the tea pathogens and to keep them below economic threshold (ETH) level.

Keywords: Biological disease management, Botanicals, Chemical fungicides, Fusarium die back; Microbial biocides, Red rust