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Ingredient

Trichoderma inoculant

Also known as: Trichoderma harzianum, Trichoderma virens, biocontrol fungus, RootShield

Live cultures of *Trichoderma* spp. — fast-growing soil fungi that suppress plant-pathogenic fungi (Pythium, Rhizoctonia, Fusarium, Sclerotinia) by mycoparasitism, antibiotic production, and competitive substrate exclusion. The right ingredient as a biocontrol seed-treatment, transplant-drench, or growing-media amendment in disease-pressure-prone systems: greenhouse seedling production, hydroponic nurseries, soil-borne-disease-history fields. Apply once at seeding/transplanting; the fungus colonizes the root rhizosphere and remains protective for the crop's life. Most-studied biocontrol agent in agriculture; effects are real but variable — works better as prevention than as cure.

Inputs / outputs

  • Form: wettable powder, granular, or liquid suspension; multiple commercial brands
  • Application: seed coating, transplant root-drench, growing-media amendment, or post-planting drench
  • Active strains: T. harzianum T-22 (most common), T. virens G-41, T. asperellum
  • Persistence: colonizes roots; remains active for the crop’s life with adequate organic substrate

Solves / unlocks

  • Damping-off prevention in greenhouse seedlings (Pythium, Rhizoctonia)
  • Soil-borne-disease suppression in transplanted vegetable crops (Fusarium wilt, Verticillium)
  • Hydroponic root-rot prevention
  • Compost-tea inoculation for foliar disease suppression (some strains)
  • Stress-tolerance enhancement (Trichoderma-colonized plants show modest drought tolerance)
  • Compatible with most fungicides except a small subset (read the label)

Constraints

  • Prevention not cure — Trichoderma works by occupying niches before pathogens arrive; applying after disease symptoms appear gives poor results.
  • Variable field performance — controlled-environment trials show clear effects; field results vary with [[soil-microbiome|soil microbiome]] and conditions.
  • Living product — refrigerate, use before expiration, follow label storage guidance.
  • Some fungicides kill Trichoderma — copper-based fungicides especially; coordinate application timing.

Source

See also

Auto-generated from this entry’s typed relations: frontmatter, grouped by relation type so the editorial signal isn’t flattened.

  • Member of: [[ingredient]]
  • Combines with: [[mycorrhizal-fungi]]

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