Biopesticides are the formulated form of active ingredients based on microorganisms such as bacteria, viruses, fungi, nematodes or naturally-occurring substances, including plant extracts and semiochemicals (e.g. insect pheromones). Application of biopesticides is still limited to only a few percent of all pesticides used for crop protection. There are many factors contributing to that situation, such as expensive production methods, poor storage stability, susceptibility to environmental conditions, efficacy problems, etc. Some of these problems can be overcome by formulation improvements. With many pressures on product performance formulation is becoming the most important area to enhance and extend the activity of biopesticides. In this paper we reviewed different types of biopesticides existing on the market and discussed possibilities for their application and current status. The expected future trends in formulation development of biopesticides are explained.

Soilborne pathogens cause significant economic losses in agricultural production all over the world. These species can survive for many years in the absence of a host plant by forming persistent structures such as microsclerotia, sclerotia, chlamydospores or oospores. Consequently, soilborne diseases are particularly difficult to predict, detect, diagnose and successfully control. Over the past 30 years, a fumigant, methyl bromide, has been widely used for their control in many crops. In 1992, methyl bromide was listed as an ozone-depleting substance under the Montreal Protocol ? an international treaty to protect the ozone layer. During the phaseout of methyl bromide, problems generated in agricultural production made it clear that dependence on a single method or a single chemical should be avoided. The objective of this review paper was to summarize the current knowledge about different methods of soilborne disease control including: crop rotation, steam soil disinfection, soil amendments, hydroponics and soilless growing systems, soil solarization, grafting, biological control and use of natural compounds, and chemical control. Positive and negative aspects of all available methods were reviewed. Benefits, achieved by simultaneous application of several methods based on different mechanisms of actions, are discussed.

Different species of the genus Monilinia are common plant pathogens that endanger pome and stone fruit production worldwide. In Serbia, two species of this genus are widely distributed - M. laxa and M. fructigena, while M. fructicola, which is officially on the A2 EPPO List of quarantine pest organisms in Europe and on the 1A part I List of quarantine pest organisms in Serbia, has so far been detected only on stored apple and nectarine fruits. The most important control measures against these pathogens include chemical control in combination with adequate cultural practices, particularly under favourable conditions for disease development. Concerning that species of this genus can cause significant economic losses, knowledge of the pathogen biology, disease epidemiology and pathogen-host interactions is a necessary prerequisite for stable and profitable production of pome and stone fruits.

Lavender, anise, chamomile, fennel, geranium, oregano, parsley, and sage essential oils were tested for their effectiveness against mushroom pathogens: Verticillium fungicola var. fungicola, Mycogone perniciosa, and Cladobotryum sp. Isolates were exposed to the volatile phase of the oils and then ventilated in order to determine if the effect of the oil was lethal to the pathogen. Oregano and geranium oils were the most toxic, having a fungicidal effect at 0.02-0.08 ?l/ml of air, depending on the pathogen. Oregano oil was characterized by high content of carvacrol and thymol, while citranelol and geraniol were the main components of geranium oil.

Twenty-six single-spore isolates of Botrytis cinerea from blackberry, raspberry, strawberry, and grapevine were investigated using transposable elements, morphological characterization, and sensitivity to fungicides. Both transposable elements, Flipper and Boty, were detected among isolates from all the hosts. Six vacuma (without transposable elements) and seven transposa (containing both elements) isolates were found to be present in sympatry in Serbia. Isolates containing only the Boty element were detected. Eight morphological types of colonies on PDA and MA media were observed, confirming the great phenotypic variability of B. cinerea. Sensitivity to fungicides was various, depending on both the fungicide and the isolate.

Morphological and molecular characterisation of 130 isolates of Botrytis cinerea, derived from raspberry fruit originating from six commercial fields in a raspberry growing region of Serbia (locations: Pozega, Prilike, Arilje, Ivanjica, Sabac and Valjevo) was performed. The results showed that all isolates formed white, uniform, aerial mycelia with entire margin on PDA medium. First morphological differences among the isolates appeared after six days of incubation. Three-week old isolates were grouped into eight distinct morphological types - four mycelial and four sclerotial. Mostly, they were of sclerotial type (81.5%) and the most frequently found was an S3 type, which formed large irregularly placed sclerotia. This type was dominant in five of six investigated locations and represented 45-65% of the isolates. The least frequent was the mycelial type M3 (0.7% of the isolates) characterized by mycelial masses. The presence of Boty and/or Flipper transposons was detected in isolates originating from all investigated locations. It was discovered that the B. cinerea population in raspberry in Serbia, besides the well-described genetically isolated sympatric species transposa (43.1%) and vacuma (10.8%), contains also another two, boty (44.6%) and flipper (1.5%) species with only one transposon (either Boty or Flipper) in the genome. In addition, it was revealed that all isolates from raspberry collected in Serbia, transposa, vacuma, boty or flipper, are sensitive or weakly resistant to fenhexamid and therefore belong to the B. cinerea genetical Group II.