Biological control of a seed-borne disease on red onion in Vietnam

The aim of the project was to establish a research collaboration between SLU and Can Tho University around biological control of seed-borne diseases in vegetables, especially in the Mekong delta. The project aimed to reduce pesticide use and form the basis for future research collaboration in this research area.

A visit at SLU from Vietnam

The researcher Khoa Nguyen Dac and hos two PhD students Tuan Tran Quoc and Van Dan Nguyen from Can Tho University in Vietnam visited SLU at the end of May 2017. In their first week, they took part in a PhD course on biological control of plant diseases. Later, the PhD students worked in the lab with detection of pathogenic Fusarium species with PCR technology. They designed primers and tested their specificity. In addition, they tried out protocols used at SLU for coating seeds with biocontrol agents based on fungi and bacteria.

Biological control of Fusarium on red onion in Vietnam

In the field experiments, the focus was on biocontrol of Fusarium basal rot on red onion, a serious disease in Vietnam. A local bacteria strain for biocontrol had already shown promising results in small-scale experiments and was therefore used. The field experiments were carried out in the wet season October-December 2017 at two locations in Vietnam with high onion production. Significant biocontrol was demonstrated, in some cases the biological control was even better than the chemical control, but the results differed between the two locations.

– This pilot experiment will form the basis for future research where we will look into why there are differences between the two localities, says Professor Dan Funck Jensen.