Application of Soil‐borne Streptomycetes for Biological Control against Fusarium Wilt of Cumin (Cuminum cyminum L) caused by Fusarium oxysporum fsp cumini

Cumin )C uminum cyminum L.) is an annual plant belonging to Apiaceae family. One of the major diseases of cumin is Fusarium wilt caused by a soil-borne, vascular wilt pathogen Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. cumini which is a devastating disease that occurs in major cumin growing areas of the world; while plants reach to 0.5- 2.5 cm in height, they die as the result of the disease. In the current research, 80 isolates of Streptomyces spp. isolated from the rhizosphere soil of Astragalus sp. and screened against Fusarium under laboratory condition. Three out of 80 isolates including M15, M26 and M80 revealed having the highest antagonistic activity, hence, selected for further evaluation under greenhouse conditions. After emergence of cumin seedlings, mortality and growth indices were compared between different treatments weekly and results were recorded. Plants were harvested after teen weeks and growth indices such as plant height and weight were recorded. The Streptomyces sp. Isolate No. M15 was showed the strongest effects on plant growth and suppression of the wilt disease as compared to the controls. The present research is an attempt to control cumin Fusarium wilt disease using Streptomyces spp. The final goal of this research is to introduce an effective biological agent for controlling managing Fusarium wilt disease under field condition. this pathogen.