The main objective of this study was to evaluate the use of organic products for their protective effect against coffee leaf rust (Hemileia vastatrix Berk. & Br.) and also their ability to induce resistance , compared to systemic fungicides. This study was carried out under greenhouse conditions using the cv. 'Catuai Vermelho 144'. Leaf extracts, suspensions of fungal conidia and bacterial cells, foliar fertilizers, hypochlorites and acibenzolar-S-methyl (ASM) were evaluated as potential inducers of resistance. The experiment was installed in a complete randomized block design with three replications. Each experimental plot contained five coffee plants and each treatment had 15 plants. The experiments were repeated twice with similar results. With regard to the protective effect, most of the treatments decreased the number of pustules and the leaf area with rust in comparison to treatment 1 (leaves sprayed with water). Water extracts of coffee leaves and methanol extracts of seeds of Azadirachta indica ("neem") gave similar results, but never better than the protection obtained by using epoxiconazole + piraclostrobin. Regarding induction of resistance, extracts of coffee leaves, ASM, Bacillus subtilis and Pseudomonas putida reduced the infection caused by H. vastatrix by more than 77 %.
alternative control of diseases; protective effect; Coffea arábica; Hemileia vastatrix
