A new system of encapsulating Trichoderma inhamatum in sodium alginate was developed for controlling Rhizoctonia solani blight of Eucalyptus spp. cuttings/mini-cuttings used for rooting. In this system, simpler materials and apparatus efficiently replaced the peristaltic pump, increasing pellet production from 594 pellets/min to approximately 6,734 pellet/min. An isolate of T. inhamatum (UFV-3) was encapsulated in pellets containing wheat bran, rice husk, oat bran, eucalyptus leaf or maize meal as food base at a concentration of 50g/l. In the second step, the best food base was evaluated at the concentrations ranging from 0 to 60 g/l. The pellets were added to R. solani infested (2 mg-macerated mycelium/g) eucalyptus rooting substrate at the rate of 2% (w/w) and the saprophytic activity of the pathogen was quantified with a baiting technique. The pellets containing wheat bran, which maximally inhibited R. solani, were used to determine the minimum pre-incubation and competition period for pathogen suppression. Increasing food base concentration in the pellets increased suppression of R. solani. Additionally, there was a significant positive interaction between food base concentration in the formulation and pathogen suppression.
