Fusarioid fungi in soils of agroecological polycultures and tropical dry forest in rural Triunfo, Brazil: Insights into sustainable agricultural management

Abstract

This study aimed to identify fusarioid fungi in the soils of sustainably managed agricultural areas and a fragment of the Brazilian Caatinga, both in a semi-arid region of Brazil. We provide a survey of peer-reviewed papers reporting the substrates, hosts, and geographic regions in Brazil in which the identified species were of agricultural interest. Soil samples were collected in July 2019, February 2020, and July 2020 from different agroecosystems and a fragment of the Brazilian Caatinga in rural Triunfo, Brazil. Fusarioid fungi were obtained by serial dilution of soil and colony purification using single-conidial culturing. Maximum likelihood evaluation (ML) based on sequences from the tef1-α gene was used to identify fusarioid fungi. The distribution of these species in other agroecosystems and the natural environment in Brazil was assessed by an extensive search of the literature available in public databases. Fusarium annulatum, F. verticillioides, F. lacertarum, and Neocosmospora vasinfecta were identified. These species are distributed throughout Brazil and are registered as plant pathogens, mainly in areas with conventional agriculture. These data reinforce the importance of sustainable soil management in agricultural areas and expand our knowledge of the behavior of these microorganisms in environments without human interference.

Keywords:
Agroforestry; Family farming; Intensive Agriculture; Soil quality indicators; Trophobiosis.