THE EFFICACY OF NANO COMPOUNDS AGAINST THE FUNGUS Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. cucumerinum CAUSING WILT DISEASE ON CUCUMBER PLANTS (Cucumis sativus L.)

Abstract

Cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) is an important fruit and vegetable crop that is widely cultivated and of high economic value. However, Fusarium wilt is caused by the fungus Fusarium oxysporium f.sp. cucumerinum (Foc) severely impairs cucumber production. Farmers are forced to use numerous chemical pesticides to control the disease, which adversely affects the health of consumers, producers and the environment. Therefore, this study was conducted to evaluate the efficacy of nano compounds in helping cucumber plants resist Fusarium wilt caused by Foc. The results showed that all tested nano compounds were capable of inhibiting the growth of Foc under laboratory conditions. Among them, the two treatments with the highest inhibitory effects were the nano CS-SA-0.05 and CS-SA-0.1 formulations, which achieved inhibition rates of 50.6% and 50.2%, respectively, at 9 days after inoculation. Furthermore, the potential of these nano compounds to enhance cucumber resistance to Fusarium wilt was also assessed under net house conditions. The findings indicated that treatment with the nano CS-SA-0.1 formulation, applied 15 days prior to artificial inoculation via both root drenching and foliar spraying, resulted in significantly lower disease incidence and disease index in cucumber plants, with disease incidence and disease index reduction efficiencies of 22.02% and 51.67% compared to the control at 60 days after sowing (quantifying the reduction level compared to the control).