Nematicidal Effect of Trichoderma harzianum T22 on Meloidogyne incognita (Kofoid & White) Chitwood, Infecting Celosia argentea TLV8

Two screenhouse trials were conducted in the Faculty of Agriculture, University of Ilorin in 2010 and 2011 to investigate the effect of filtrate of Trichoderma harzianum on Meloidogyne incognita infecting Celosia argentea seedlings. The filterate reduced root galling and soil nematode population significantly; 2.78 gall index and 117.8 soil nematode population observed in nematode infected plants were significantly higher than 0.4 gall index and 15.2 soil nematode population in Trichoderma harzianum treated plants. The mean plant height and number of leaves were also significantly higher in the treated pots than in the untreated control. The results of this study suggest that the biopesticidal potential of Trichoderma harzianum could be exploited agriculturally to manage the rootknot nematode pests that limit the production of Celosia argentea. Keywords: Trichoderma harzianum, Celosia argentia, Meloidogyne incognita, Bionematicide, Filtrat