Abstract:
Enset is a perennial crop belonging to the family Musaceae that as a staple crop in major Enset
growing area as well as significantly contribute to the development of national economy of
Ethiopia. But, currently its production is severely declined by wilt causing pathogens. During
this study, in vitro antagonism activities of Enset rhizosphere microbes against Enset wilt
causing pathogens were determined. Out of 30 Enset rhizosphere samples, 232 isolates were
obtained in which 34% exhibited antimicrobial activity with dominance of bacterial isolates in
antimicrobial activity 28(34.44%). Furthermore, of 63 rhizosphere microbial isolates showed
antimicrobial properties 26 (41.27%) belong to actinomycetes and among Enset rhizosphere
fungal isolates, 12 (20.69%) and 13 (40.63%) were antimicrobial producer mold and yeast
respectively. Temporally the potential microbial isolates identified to the level of genera bacteria
including
Bacillus,
Pseudomonas, Streptococcus, Corynebacterium, Spirillum, and
Enterococcus; Actinomycetes isolates were identified as members of the genera Streptomyces,
Nocardia, Micromonospora, and Brevibacterium, while Fungal isolates, including yeasts
(Candida, Rhodotorula, Cryptococcus spp) and molds (Aspergillus, Trichoderma, Penicillium,
and Fusarium spp) were identified. Generally these findings highlight the enset rhizosphere
harbor potential microbes with applications in sustainable agriculture and plant health
management.
