This particular bacterium, or disease, is one of the good guys, keeping fungal outbreaks under control.
It’s easy to see things happening in the spring garden: shoots peak out of the soil, leaves unfoil, buds burst open and everything grows seemingly overnight. But there is as much, perhaps even more, happening that we can’t see with the naked eye.
Behind that patina of spring colour and new life is a fierce battle raging throughout the garden, above the soil and below its surface, on leaves and amongst roots. Microbes are locked in territorial warfare, competing for space and resources to ensure their own survival and their expansion.
We tend to think of bacteria and fungi in the garden as the bad guys, to be eliminated in the pursuit of a pristine and ‘clean’ landscape, but some of these microbes need to be there, are beneficial and play a vital part in the garden’s ecosystem.
One of these bacterial ‘good guys’ is Bacillus amyloliquefaciens (Ba), discovered in 1943 and intensely researched since then for its properties as a plant growth stimulant and broad-spectrum biofungicide. Ba is a beneficial bacterium that occurs naturally in soils, and is now globally recognised as an effective, nontoxic biofungicide that is widely used in agriculture and suitable for use in organic production. Ba is now available on retailers’ shelves as EcoBuz Disease Pro, offering home gardeners a biological disease-management alternative.
Disease Pro offers a natural disease-management solution that has no impact on the environment or beneficial insects, pets or children playing in it. It is also residue-free and has no withholding period, which means that edibles can be harvested after being treated and immediately eaten. You can literally apply Disease Pro, pick a fruit and eat it, totally safely.
Disease Pro is an excellent resistance management product, helping to prevent pathogens from becoming resistant to a particular treatment. Due to its unique mode of action it may be used in a program to avoid routine spraying of the same chemical actives, which can result in resistant disease populations that become very difficult to manage. It can also be used in conjunction with and at the same time as chemical fungicides (excluding copper based products).
More about Disease Pro:
The ‘active ingredient’ in Disease Pro consists of Ba (strain D747) bacterial spores, which are mixed with water and then applied to plant surfaces, where they germinate and grow. Disease Pro supresses powdery mildew and downy mildew, and is registered as such on a number of crops such as table grapes and cucurbits (the pumpkin and squash family).
Disease Pro produces substances (antimicrobial metabolites) that prevent the growth of fungi and other bacteria.
Disease Pro is fast growing and quickly colonises plant surfaces, competing for limited nutrients and space. This makes it difficult for diseases to get established.
Disease Pro boosts the plants natural immune system, which over time improves the plant’s resistance and makes it less susceptible to pathogens.
Disease Pro works best as a preventative spray, applied before the onset of a fungal infection. If you know that you live in a damp area or that your garden is prone to mildew infections, inoculate susceptible plants before mildew becomes a problem. The Ba spores will quickly colonise the plant surfaces, occupying space and resources that the mildew or other pathogens would need to become established. Apply weekly with a minimum of three applications. So get out there and get multiplying those spores!
Gardening is biology, revolving around the biological processes of growth and life. For millions of years, plants have thrived and grown successfully with no human intervention.
Chemical pest control and plant nutrition have become the norm over the past 80 years, though, with many negative side effects recently emerging. The good news is that new natural innovations, offering a long-term holistic alternative, are now emerging – ‘biologicals’ for biological gardening.
A biological gardening approach centres around nature, embracing the synergistic relationships that occur naturally to ensure survival and sustainability. As gardeners we have been taught to view bacteria as germs, fungi as diseases, and insects and weeds as pests. However, the scientific truth is that many of these critters are beneficial, even essential, to healthy plant growth and development. When there is an excess of one pest species it is often an indication that the natural balance has been disturbed and an indication of vulnerability.
Natural biological control takes place continuously, in its own unique way, within every ecosystem. Using a garden as an example, biological pest control would include everything from birds feeding on grubs to owls catching rats, to ladybirds keeping aphids under control, or parasitic wasps laying their eggs on caterpillars. Even competitor plants such as alien invasives influence the ecosystem of a garden.
Finally, gardeners need to be aware that there are good pathogens – beneficial bacteria, fungi and viruses that feed on microbes and insects. There are also bacteria that are good for the soil, as probiotics are good for your stomach.
Biological products contain the naturally occurring enemies of crop pests and diseases, as well as organisms that facilitate improved root growth and nutrient uptake. These living organisms may be fungi, bacteria or viruses, in environmentally friendly and easy-to-use formulations, excellent for biological gardening.
Although perceived as a relatively new science, this technology dates back to the late 19th century, but has experienced a re-emergence with the decreasing faith in chemical agriculture. The process of identifying, screening, isolating, testing and mass producing microbes can take decades and in order for biological products to be sold commercially, they need to adhere to the same stringent controls as synthetic products in terms of efficacy and application.
Several strains of fungi and bacteria have been identified to be effective in the control and management of pests and diseases. Each has a unique mode-ofaction. For example, the fungal spores of Beauveria bassiana attach and penetrate through the ‘skin’ of whitefly, spider mite and various other insect pests when contact is made. The fungus grows and multiplies inside the insect, ultimately resulting in death. Similarly, beneficial bacteria Bacillus amyloliquefaciens colonises plant surfaces, occupying space at potential infection sites, utilising nutrient sources and making it difficult for pathogens such as powdery mildew to get established.
Biopesticides are not a ‘soft option’, but offer highly effective pest-management solutions. Due to their natural presence and relative host specificity they are safe for the environment, non-toxic to non-target organisms like bees, beneficial insects, pets and, most importantly, children. In addition, most bio-pesticides are residue free and can be applied to edible crops right up to harvest. They also act in a way that is unique when compared to their chemical counterparts. This makes them ideal for use in rotation with synthetic chemistry to prevent and manage pest resistance – a process whereby frequent use of the same chemistry results in a pest organism no longer being susceptible to its effect.
What does all this mean for biological gardening?
The goal of sustainable biological gardening is to grow healthy plants, in a healthy environment with minimal impact on the environment. Biopesticides offer natural, non-chemical alternatives. These may not be as immediate and as impactful as a synthetic pesticide, because they take a little longer to take effect, but they are just as effective as their chemical counterparts and should be the first option in your garden’s pest management program.
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