Abstract
malvacearum, the bacterial blight pathogen of cotton, were evaluated under screenhouse and field conditions for biological control of the disease. Under both screenhouse and field conditions, seed treatment followed by foliar application of P. fluorescens provided the maximum protection (4.6% disease intensity) followed by seed treatment and foliar application of the antagonist l2D (12.6% disease intensity). Application of the antagonists 48 h prior to the pathogen inoculation proved significantly better than other times of application. The effectiveness of all the antagonists increased with increase in their concentration in the antagonist-pathogen mixture.
