Is Classical Biocontrol Using Fungi a Viable Option for Submersed Aquatic Plant Management?

Three different pathogen biological control strategies, classical, inundative, and augmentative have practical use on invasive weeds in the United States (Charudattan 2001a). Classical biological control involves the introduction of agents into a region that is not part of their natural range to permanently suppress populations of target weeds (Harley and Forno 1992). Inundative biological control involves the development of a bioherbicide delivered at inoculum levels sufficient to bring about control of a target weed (Harley and Forno 1992). Augmentation involves supplementing numbers of a native or naturalized pathogen into a weed population, timed to bring on an epidemic (Charudattan 2001a).