Double action in sugarcane cultivation

The use of Trichoderma harzianum has been established in Brazilian agricultural systems in the last ten years, largely due to the obtaining of the first product registered in Brazil based on the fungus Trichoderma hazianum, as a microbiological fungicide, obtained by Koppert in 2007.

TRICHODERMIL SC 1306 field data celebrates the product's excellence in reducing and controlling different targets such as Fusarium (rot), rhizoctonia (melting or tipping over) and sclerotinia (white mold) for various crops from grains, grasses and HF.

Its mode of action occurs in different ways, including the control of phytopathogenic fungi, since Trichoderma has high competence in colonizing soils and root systems, which primarily allows the fungus to occupy infection sites and, consequently, produce metabolites, enzymes (volatile substances) that are released by Trichoderma, generating a chemical barrier to phytopathogens, as well as triggering in plants a physiological response to the production of phytohormones, which directly maximizes the productive potential of crops, thus characterizing the Growth Promotion action of Plants. Trichoderma also has the ability to parasitize sclerotia and hyphae and disease-causing fungi in the soil, making them unviable and contributing significantly to reducing the incidence of diseases. The solubilization of nutrients in the soil, making them available to plants, is also attributed to the action of Trichoderma in the rhizosphere.

Through a lot of innovation in research into the different modes of action of the biological control agent Trichoderma harzianum, strain 1306, it was found that some metabolites or enzymes have direct action on populations of phytopathogenic nematodes, including Pratylenchus zeae (lesion nematode).

Since then, Koppert has dedicated itself to conducting repeated experimental fields as well as agronomic feasibility trials against the target Pratylenchus zeae resulted in its inclusion in the TRICHODERMIL SC 1306 product registration, moving to microbiological fungicide and nematicide through approval from the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Supply (MAPA) since September 2017.

Therefore, in addition to all the already known benefits and advantages of using this modern tool, the TRICHODERMIL SC 1306 product now has dual action (fungicide and microbiological nematicide) in the sugarcane crop, directly combating fungi and phytopathogenic nematodes.