Abstract: Crown and root rot of white lupin (Lupinus albus) is quite complex in aetiology as several soil-borne fungal pathogens, such as Pythium ultimum, Rhizoctonia solani and Fusarium spp., are usually recovered from infected plants. A severe outburst of the disease compromised the crop outcome in a farm located in Campania; notwithstanding, some more or less extended patches of unaffected plants were visible amidst the decaying areas. The presence of fungal antagonists was investigated in the rhizosphere of both healthy and infected plants to verify which species had been stimulated in the presence of a massive inoculum of several pathogens, and if anyone eventually prevailed in the unaffected patches. The ability of the strains isolated to establish mycoparasitic relationships and/or to inhibit mycelial growth of the above-mentioned pathogens was investigated in vitro. Besides Clonostachys rosea, whose active development was particularly evident on the outer surface of the roots of the infected plants, most species were recovered from both sources. Penicillium restrictum stood out for its prevalence in the rhizosphere of healthy plants, and showed a conspicuous mycoparasitic aptitude that is reported for the first time in the present study.

Rosario Nicoletti¹, Angela Carella¹, Eugenio Cozzolino¹

¹Council for Research and Experimentation in Agriculture - Research Unit of Scafati

Keywords: Rhizosphere , Antagonists , Disease escape