Dieback (Moria) of hazelnut: Isolation and characterization of two potential biocontrol agents

During 2001-2005, 54 bacterial strains were isolated from the rhizosphere and phyllosphere of hazelnut trees with symptoms of dieback. The bacteria were screened by in vitro agar plating assays for possible biological control of hazelnut dieback. Two of the bacteria inhibited the growth of the hazelnut dieback-associated pathogens, Pseudomonas avellanae and Pseudomonas syringae pv. coryli. The antagonistic bacteria were identified as Pseudomonas fluorescens and Bacillus megaterium according to phenotypic characters and 16S rDNA sequencing