Wheat takeall lessons learned during a search for effective biological control

Abstract

Takeall (causal agent Gaeumannomyces graminis var tritici) is one of the most important soilborne diseases of wheat Greenhouse screening of microorganisms for disease suppression was conducted using a targeted approach that focused on the fungal genus Trichoderma In spite of indications of disease suppression in preliminary assays effective biocontrol was not observed in subsequent tests Explanations for this apparent loss of disease suppression could include insufficient numbers of potential biocontrol agents screened during the selection process or the issue of falsepositive (type 1 error) results