The Effect of Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi and Gliocladium Fungi on the Yield of Small Green Pepper ( Capsicum annuum) Grown by Sustainable Agriculture

Abstract

The potential vulnerability of the conventional agricultural systems has been become increasingly alarmed for agricultural scientists, government officials, environmentalists, farmers (both urban and rural laymen). Agricultural soils are often subject to loss of carbon, toxicity and hazard of agrochemicals, nutrient run-off, excessive erosion, and consequently a decline in soil fertility. The purpose of this study is to present new perspectives and strategies for efficient and effective use of natural resources (wood and bamboo wastes, weeds, and fungi) to enhance sustainable systems of agriculture. A next generation agriculture by using wood and bamboo wastes with the application of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) and gliocladium fungi (GF) was investigated to establish high productivity of small green pepper (SGP, Capsicum annuum). Wood and bamboo wastes as carbon sources, cut weeds as organic sources, and a minor amount of AMF, and GF were applied separately and conjointly in the four experimental plots to evaluate the effects of wood and bamboo wastes (high C:N ratio), weeds, and fungi on the production of SGP. The combination of carbon, organic, and fungal sources at T1 (wood wastes + bamboo wastes + cut weeds + AMF + GF) obtained high productivity of SGP. The yield was 400 times higher than control (untreated). Another notable significant result is that all the treatments contained a very small amount of nitrate compared to conventional practice. This study suggests that combination of carbon (wood, and bamboo wastes), organic (cut weeds), and fungal sources (AMF, and GF) has a potential to be innovative agricultural materials for the next generation sustainable agriculture.