Biocontrol potential of endophytic bacterial isolates against leaf spot disease of mulberry under polyhouse conditions

The sericulture industry relies heavily on the quality of mulberry foliage which is substantially compromised by leaf spot disease caused by a fungal pathogen Phloeospora maculans under temperate climatic conditions of Kashmir. The present investigation was conducted to evaluate the biocontrol potential of endohpytic bacterial isolates against leaf spot disease of mulberry under polyhouse conditions. Among the tested isolates, COTS-ENDO-2 recorded the lowest disease incidence (19.71%) and disease severity (9.83%) resulting in a maximum disease reduction of 71.47 percent. The application of COTS-ENDO-2 also significantly improved plant growth parameters with shoot and root volumes of 12.44 and 2.89 cm³ respectively compared to 3.09 and 0.41 cm³ in the control. The results indicate that COTS-ENDO-2 possesses strong biocontrol potential and can be utilized as an effective eco-friendly agent for the management of leaf spot disease of mulberry under protected conditions.