‘De Zonnenbloem Jonge Planten’ specialises in propagating a wide variety of potted plants and ferns. With fewer and fewer chemical fungicides available on the market, owners Bart and Chris Oostveen were happy to participate in this trial.
Pathogen suppression
Wouter, grower at ‘De Zonnebloem Jonge Planten’, said: “We have encountered the fungi Fusarium and Botrytis in some fern seed trays. We’ve seen Asperello T34 Biocontrol is able to keep the fungi from spreading and where there has been an infection it has remained very limited. For several cultivars, Asperello T34 Biocontrol seemed to work better compared to the other biological product of reference. We are hopeful that Asperello T34 Biocontrol will soon be registered for commercial use in the Netherlands offering a solution to the challenges we are currently facing.”
Actively feeding
Interestingly, soil laboratory analysis showed that there were ten times more Asperello T34 Biocontrol in the affected areas than in the healthy ones. “This indicates that Trichoderma asperellum, the active ingredient of Asperello T34 Biocontrol, actively feeds on the pathogenic fungi", explains Sarah van Beneden of Biobest.