Synergistic effects of combining biocontrol agents with silicon against postharvest diseases of jujube fruit

The synergistic effects of biocontrol yeasts Cryptococcus laurentii and Rhodotorula glutinis combined with silicon (Si) against Alternaria alternata and Penicillium expansum molds were investigated in jujube fruit (Chinese date, Zizyphus jujuba) stored at 20 and 0degreesC, respectively. Combinations of C. laurentii and R. glutinis at 5 x 10(7) cells/ml with 2% Si was most effective in controlling the diseases caused by A. alternata and P. expansum on jujube fruit stored at 20degreesC. When fruits were stored at 0degreesC, combining C. laurentii and R. glutinis with Si was as effective against P. expansum as was Si or the yeasts applied alone and was more effective in controlling A. alternata. Si may have a fungistatic effect by directly inhibiting pathogen growth, but it did not greatly influence the growth of the antagonists.