Speaker
Description
In recent years, biostimulants and corroborants (plant strengtheners) products have been developed to improve both the vegetative performance and the tolerance to abiotic stresses. In Italy biostimulants are regulated by the law on fertilizers (75/2010), while corroborants are regulated by D.M. 6793/2018 and, according to these guidelines, they are not considered as pesticides. Latest studies have, however, ascertained the bioactivity of some of these products against phytopathogens and insect pests.
Recently, to evaluate the in vitro activity of the biostimulants Olivesaver and Agrusaver (Savory Sun VA LLC) and the corroborant Propoli Serbios (Serbios srl) against some fungal pathogens, assays were carried out at the Laboratory of Plant Pathology of the SAAF Department of the University of Palermo. Artificial agar media (Potato Dextrose Agar, PDA), simple or addicted with different concentrations of the above-mentioned formulates, were used to evaluate the differences of diametral growth of the fungi: Coriolopsis gallica, Botrytis cinerea, Fomitiporia mediterranea, Fusarium sp, Pleurostoma richardsiae, Pleurotus ostreatus and Rhizoctonia sp.
Biostimulants showed to contain the growth of most of the tested fungi. In particular, OliveSaver had the greatest effectiveness in inhibiting the growth of Rhizoctonia sp. (total inhibition), moderate in Fusarium sp. and P. ostreatus and weak on B. cinerea, while AgruSaver induced the growth inhibition on all the fungal pathogens, except B. cinerea. The efficacy of the corroborant Propoli Serbios was significant only on P. ostreatus. Assays aimed to evaluate the efficacy of these products on the evolution of different diseases in vivo are ongoing and preliminary results highlighted that the application of these products can have direct effects on phytopathogens. Based on these results, it is considered appropriate to re-evaluate the current legislation by attributing to these products also control activities against some phytopathogens.
