Management of endophytic bacteria and organic material for the biological control of yellowing disease on pepper

Yellowing disease caused by plant-parasitic nematodes have been recognized as potentially serious constraints to crop productivity on pepper. The use of chemical pesticide in agriculture in Indonesia for controlling plant diseases are still the most preferred way by farmers. Therefore, alternative control strategies for plant pest and diseases that are cheap and environmentally friendly needs to be developed. It is widely recognized that organic matter can improve soil quality and ecosystem health. In many cases, organic matter and microorganism can reduce plant losses caused by soil borne pathogens. However, little information is available about the influence of combination of organic material and bacterial endophytes on the severity of yellowing disease in pepper. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of formulation of endophytic bacteria in combination with organic material against yellowing disease on pepper. Selected endophytic bacteria isolated from pepper and organic material were used in this experiments. The results showed that biological agents of endophytic bacteria and organic material are effective in controlling plant parasitic nematodes and stimulate the plant growth of pepper. Combination of endophytic bacteria and organic material may be one component for nematode control in pepper.