Botany · Ch 9 — Plant Breeding
Bio-Pesticides
Bio-Pesticides
Bio-pesticides are biologically derived agents used to control plant pests, valued for being non-toxic, cheaper and more eco-friendly than chemical or synthetic pesticides, and they have become an important part of integrated pest management given growing environmental and health concerns about chemical pesticide use. Trichoderma species (Figure 9.8) are free-living soil and root-zone fungi recognised as biocontrol agents that control plant disease, enhance root growth, improve crop productivity, increase resistance to abiotic stress, and improve nutrient uptake and use. Beauveria species (Figure 9.9) are entomopathogenic fungi found naturally in soils worldwide; they parasitise a range of arthropod pests, causing the characteristic white muscardine disease in i …
What this figure shows. Two-part figure: (a) a photograph of a Trichoderma viride fungal culture/colony, labelled as a potential bio-control agent for soil-borne diseases; (b) a photograph of a packaged commercial biopesticide product derived from Trichoderma, showing how the biocontrol fungus is formulated and sold for field application against soil …
What this figure shows. Three-part figure: (a) a photograph of Beauveria fungal culture growing on a plate; (b) a photograph of an insect infected with Beauveria, showing its body covered in the fungus's characteristic white muscardine growth after the fungus has parasitised and killed it; (c) a photograph of entomopathogenic fungi growing over multiple insects on a green plant, illustrating how the fungus spreads through an arthropod pest populatio …