The Use of PGPB-based Bioformulations to Control Bacterial Diseases of Vegetable Crops in Ukraine

Abstract

Ukraine is one of the largest producers of vegetable products in the world. The sustainable development of this industry in Ukraine is vital for the food security of many countries worldwide. Recently, farmers in Ukraine are facing the challenge of increasing the number and severity of bacterial diseases. This problem is getting particularly harsh in the production of vegetables. The changing climatic conditions in many regions contribute to the increase of the aggressiveness of bacterial pathogens. Ukraine is also experiencing the negative consequences of rising temperatures, changes in the amount and quality of precipitation, and stronger winds. These factors facilitate the changes of stable regions of the spread of bacterial pathogens. In Ukraine, they result in the emergence, successful acclimatization and spread of new bacterial pathogens of vegetable crops, in particular, Ralstonia solanacearum. The growing risk of bacterial diseases in vegetable production requires the development of new strategies to control their causative agents, which should, at the same time, meet the requirements of environmental safety. This paper is aimed to analyse the potential of plant growth-promoting bacteria (PGPB) based bioformulations to control bacterial diseases of vegetable crops in Ukraine. Farmers in Ukraine, who are engaged in growing vegetables, feel lack of biocontrol compositions against the causative agents of bacterial diseases because the range of biocontrol agents with antibacterial activity approved for use in the country is limited. The most commonly used plant protection products in Ukraine are represented by the preparations based on bacteria of the genera Bacillus and Pseudomonas. Most of such products on the market are those developed and manufactured in Ukraine. Under given circumstances, the use of inoculants based on PGPB to control bacterial diseases of vegetable crops in Ukraine, as well as globally, seems very promising. Such biocontrol agents prevent contamination of plants with phytopathogens by inducing acquired systemic resistance and stimulating their growth and better productivity. Seed inoculation is a promising way of using PGPB in crop production. The market of bioformulations for vegetable farming in Ukraine is represented by products with a limited shelf life. It still experiences a shortage of up-to-date preparation forms that would ensure the long-term viability of PGPB and a prolonged activity of the compositions based on them. Thus, the development and introduction of encapsulated PGPB nanopreparations may contribute to solving the problem of biological control of pathogens of bacterial diseases of vegetable crops in Ukraine.