Assessing Biocontrol Agents Against Anthracnose Disease and their Effect on Growth Parameter in Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench.

Sorghum is attacked by a broad range of plant pathogens. Anthracnose, caused by Colletotrichum graminicola (Ces.) Wilson, is one of the most destructive foliar diseases. Experiment was conducted to develop strategies for combating this disease. In a glass house soil drenching experiment maximum germination was observed with TH-43 and TH-38 (86.66%), TH-43 recorded 17.00% increase in plant height whereas maximum reduction in disease severity was observed with TH-39 (33.94%). Maximum germination was obtained with TH-38 bioprimed seeds (90.00%), whereas maximum increase in plant height (25.72%) and reduction in disease severity (47.82 %) was observed with TH-39 under glass house conditions while in glass house biopriming + drenching experiment maximum germination was in TH-39 (86.66%), plant height was maximum in TH-43 (31.80%), increase and reduction of disease severity was maximum in TH-43 treatment (45.05 %) as compared to control. Under field conditions TH-39 recorded maximum reduction in disease severity (28.8 %) whereas maximum stem diameter (47.63%) increase and green fodder yield (40.18%) increase were obtained with TH-43 under seeds biopriming + drenching experiment.