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inoculated with 1000 R. similis three days after re-potting bananas. The most efficacious
isolate (A3) was then used for further glasshouse experiments.
Field soil was treated with carbon in the form of sucrose, cellulose, lignin or an equal mixture
of all three at a rate of 45g of carbon to 1500g of soil and compared to untreated soil. The A3
F. oxysporum isolate was added to half of the pots. Plants were inoculated seven days later
with 500 motile R. similis per pot and allowed to grow for 12 weeks before being harvested.
Of the F. oxysporum isolates tested, the isolate A3 was found to significantly reduce the
number of R. similis in the roots of bananas, relative to untreated soil and when sterile
sorghum alone was mixed with the soil. However, when the isolate A3 was added to soil
with different forms of carbon it was found to be ineffective at reducing numbers of R.
similis. Nevertheless, the addition of sucrose was able to significantly reduce R. similis
numbers relative to untreated soil. Further work is required to develop an understanding of
soil ecological conditions that favour the promotion of nematode antagonists.
Acknowledgements: Horticulture Australia Limited and Growcom provided funding for this
work under project FR02025
Biocontrol of Mushroom Sciarid Fly using Entomopathogenic Nematode,
Steinernema Carpocapsae on Different Mushrooms
Parihar, A., P.C.Verma & A.U.Siddiqui
Department of Nematology, Maharana Pratap University of Agriculture & Technology, Udaipur – 313 001
The experiment for the biocontrol of sciarid fly on mushroom (Milky mushroom & Shiitake
mushroom through Steinernema carpocapsae was conducted. Substrate of milky mushroom
(Calocybe indica) and shiitake mushroom ( Lentinula edodes) were prepared. To know the
effect of different inoculum levels of Steinernema carpocapsae, 5,000, 10,000, 15,000 and
20,000 IJs / bag were inoculated. It was observed that mushroom yield in treated bags were
significantly higher as compared to control in both the species of mushroom. However, the
maximum yield of milky mushroom was obtained @ 15,000 IJs / bag followed by 10,000 IJs
/ bag. The cost benefit ration was 1:2.68 and 1:2.57 respectively. Similarly maximum yield of
shiitake mushroom was obtained @ 10,000 IJs / bag followed by 5,000 IJs / bag with the cost
benefit ratio of 1:2.29 and 1:2.17 respectively. The yield of mushroom further increased with
an increase in the inoculum level of Steinernema carpocapsae up to certain level. It was
therefore, concluded that the effective doses of Steinernema carpocapsae for the biocontrol
of sciarid fly on milky and shiitake mushroom were 15,000 and 10,000 IJs / bag respectively.
These doses were also found to increase the yield of mushroom and to reduce the population
of sciarid fly significantly.
5 th International Congress of Nematology, 2008 300