Effect of various soil conditions on the growth of fig cuttings infected with ceratocystis canker

Abstract

'Masui Dauphine' fig (Ficus carica L.) cuttings were grown in pots with various soils for several months. The cuttings were infected with the ceratocystis canker by injection with a suspension of Ceratocystis fimbriata. We studied the shoot growth of the cuttings and nursery mortality against C. fimbriata. A. mixture of a sod-cultured orchard soil and vermiculite (OV) (1:1, v/v) was used in the first experiment. The nursery mortality was 71% in heated OV, 67% in heated OV with excess water, and 67% in heated OV with excess chemical fertilizers. The mortality was lower in heated OV inoculated with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) (26%), heated OV sodded with Vulpia megalura (48%), and non-heated OV (48%) and heated OV inoculated with Trichoderma harzianum RH221 (58%). In the second experiment, a mixture of a forest soil and vermiculite (FV) (1:1, v/v) was used. The nursery mortality was higher in heated FV (68%), but it was lower in heated FV with AMF (16%) and non - heated FV (26%) and heated FV sodded with V. megalura (44%). The least damage to shoot growth was observed in the soils with AMF, in which the lowest mortality was observed in each experiment. These results show that the application of AMF has the potential to control the ceratocystis canker in fig cultures.