An overview of the potential role of microbial metabolites as greener fungicides for future sustainable plant diseases management

Abstract

Fungal plant diseases can severely damage oil palm crops and compromise agricultural yields. To ensure a high crop yield while keeping the fungal pathogens at bay, microbial control to combat such diseases offers a more sustainable alternative to chemical control. It is safer to replace chemical fungicides with eco-friendly bio formulations containing living fungi or bacteria and their products to manage fungal infestations on plants, especially oil palm. This is because natural antagonistic microorganisms/substances form components of biofungicides and protect plants by various modes of action such as hyperparasitism, antibiosis and/or by induction of systemic resistance. Microbial agents’ application in managing fungal plant diseases, especially oil palm crop diseases, promises a safer and sustainable agricultural system to control fungal phytopathogens while ecologically less polluting. This article briefly describes the different bioformulations and the mechanism of action of microbial agents to manage fungal phytopathogens of crops, especially in oil palm. A summary of various merits and demerits of biofungicides over synthetic ones and the future outlooks are also highlighted. Bio-based microbial agents for controlling fungal phytopathogens, especially in oil palm plants, appear to be a promising fungal pest management approach considering the growing need for sustainable practices in the agronomic sector.