Biological Control of Sclerotinia sclerotiorum Using Indigenous Chitinolytic Actinomycetes in Jordan

The white cottony stem rot pathogen Sclerotinia scierotiorum was subjected to 70 different isolates of actinomycetes indigenous to Jordan as biological control agents. Forty of them demonstrated chitinase activity on crab shell chitin agay (CCA) media and they were segregated into three groups: 14 highly active, 12 moderately active, and 14 with low activity, with average clearing zones of (4.7-8.3), (3.7-4.3), and (2.3-3.3) mm surrounding colonies on CCA, respectively. Further, these isolates were able to inhibit radial mycelium growth of the pathogen and were categorized into three antagonistic groups: 13 strong, 13 moderate, and 14 weak antagonists, with antibiosis inhibition Bones of (32.0-45.7), (22.7-31.3), and (3.7-22.3) mm, respectively. High levels of chitinase activity of the isolates Ma3 (8.3 mm), Jul (7.7 mm), and Sa8 (7.7 mm) with their antagonistic activity against mycelium growth of 45.7, 44.3, and 40.7 mm were observed, respectively. These isolates exhibited fungicidal activity against sclevotia of S. sclerotiorum. On the other hand, isolates Na5, Aj3, and Aj2 that produced no chitinase showed fungistatic effect only.