Towards Practical Application of Verticillium isaacii Vt305 to Control Verticillium Wilt of Cauliflower: Exploring Complementary Biocontrol Strategies

Verticillium wilt is one of the most important diseases of cauliflower and can lead to serious economic losses. In this study, two complementary strategies were explored to employ the antagonistic capacity of Verticillium isaacii towards Verticillium wilt of cauliflower. The first strategy focused on introducing V. isaacii Vt305 by artificial inoculation of cauliflower plantlets at the nursery stage. Two inoculum types (spores and microsclerotia of V. isaacii Vt305) and different concentrations of microsclerotia were tested in greenhouse and field trials. Seed treatment with 500 microsclerotia seed(−1) led to a satisfying biocontrol level of Verticillium wilt. In addition, the PHYTO-DRIP(®) system was successful in delivering the microsclerotia to cauliflower seeds. The second strategy relied on the stimulation of the natural V. isaacii populations by rotating cauliflower with green manures and potato. Four green manure crops and potato were tested during multiple field experiments. Although these crops seemed to stimulate the V. isaacii soil population, this increase did not result in a control effect on Verticillium wilt of cauliflower in the short term. Importantly, our results indicate that the use of green manures is compatible with the application of V. isaacii Vt305 as biocontrol agent of Verticillium wilt in cauliflower.