Shrimp shell compost brews bacteria that kill olive tree fungus
Gharbi Y, Hfayeth H, Bouazizi E, Saoudi S, Triki MA
Composting
If you grow olives or love the gnarled old trees lining a Mediterranean-style garden, this points to a way to protect them from lethal wilt disease using composted seafood waste instead of synthetic fungicides.
Researchers took shrimp shells and other seafood waste, left them to compost for four months, and found the finished material was teeming with beneficial bacteria that attack the fungi causing olive trees to wither and die. Five specific bacterial strains, cousins of well-known biocontrol microbes, stopped fungal growth by as much as 81% in lab tests. Filtered liquid squeezed from the compost worked even better, wiping out nearly all fungal growth in a dish, though the researchers stress this needs testing on real trees before anyone can recommend it as a treatment.
Key Findings
Isolate X12 (Bacillus subtilis) inhibited Verticillium dahliae growth by 81.2% and Fusarium solani by 67.8%
Filter-sterilized compost leachate achieved up to 99.8% fungal inhibition in vitro, while autoclaving reduced activity depending on the pathogen
Five compost-derived bacterial strains (Bacillus subtilis, B. amyloliquefaciens, B. velezensis, Pseudomonas putida, P. fluorescens) showed broad-spectrum antagonism against six olive decline pathogens
chevron_right Technical Summary
Scientists turned shrimp shells and waste into a rich compost that grows powerful bacteria capable of killing the fungi responsible for olive tree decline, offering a way to fight plant disease using recycled seafood scraps instead of chemical fungicides.
Abstract Preview
Original paper
Characterization of shrimp waste-based compost and its antifungal efficacy against pathogens causing olive tree decline.
Marine waste valorization through composting offers a sustainable strategy to reduce environmental burdens while generating bioactive amendments capable of suppressing soil-borne phytopathogens. Th...
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The olive is a species of subtropical evergreen tree in the family Oleaceae. Originating in Asia Minor, it is abundant throughout the Mediterranean Basin, with wild subspecies in Africa and western Asia; modern cultivars are traced primarily to the Near East, Aegean Sea, and Strait of Gibraltar. ...