Effect of Bio-Agent as Seed Treatment to Check the Initial Infection of Reniform Nematode, Rotylenchulus reniformis on Summer Mungbean (Vigna radiata L.)

Reniform nematode, Rotylenchulus reniformis received greater attention due to its polyphagous nature, cosmopolitan distribution and adaptability to different agro-ecological condition. It causes great losses to pulses including Mungbean (Singh, 2015). Therefore, an experiment was carried out to test the efficacy of botanicals to manage the reniform nematode infecting summer mungbean. Bioagents i.e. Metarhizium anisopliae and Beauveria bassiana were used at 5%, 10% and 15% as seed treatment. Trichoderma viride at 10% was kept as standard check. An untreated check was also maintained to compare the experimental findings. The experiment was conducted in completely randomized design with five replications. Results revealed that Metarhizium anisopliae at 15 % w/w as seed treatment significantly improve the plant growth parameters (44.81–77.21%) of summer mungbean followed by Beauveria bassiana at 15% (38.44-70.88%) and Metarhizium anisopliae at 10% (34.13–62.50%) as compared to untreated check. These treatments reduced the infestation of reniform nematode, R. reniformis on mungbean to the tune of 36.04-47.43%.