In vitro Evaluation of Fungicides and Bio Control Agents (BCA) against Leaf Blight of Sorghum (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Caused by Exserohilum turcicum (Pass.) Leonard and Suggs

Sorghum (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench) is an important tropical cereal crop belonging to the tribe Andropogoneae of the family Poaceae, characterized by spikelets borne in pairs. Among the various diseases affecting sorghum, Turcicum Leaf Blight (TLB) caused by E. turcicum (Pass.) Leonard & Suggs, is a major foliar disease that thrives in warm and humid conditions. To explore effective biological as well as chemical management strategies a laboratory experiment was conducted at department of Plant Pathology during 2023-24 to evaluate the efficacy of five bioagents against Turcicum Leaf Blight in sorghum under in vitro conditions. Among the tested bio-control agents, Trichoderma viride demonstrated the highest antagonistic activity with 84.44% inhibition of mycelial growth of E. turcicum, followed by T. harzianum and Trichoderma fasciculatum. The findings indicate the potential of T. viride as a promising biological control agent for managing TLB in sorghum. Among chemical treatments, fungicides such as Carbendazim 25% + Flusilazole 12.5% SE and Fluopyram 17.7% + Tebuconazole 17.7% SC achieved complete (100%) inhibition of fungal growth at all tested concentrations.