When PA was used with
R. mucilaginosa in fruits, R. mucilaginosa multiplied rapidly in
wounds at the first stage of storage and, perhaps, consumed
available nutrients, which may facilitate biocontrol by nutrient
competition. These results suggest that PA enhance the biocontrol
efficacy of R. mucilaginosa to postharvest diseases of strawberries
by facilitating the growth of R. mucilaginosa in strawberries and
enhancing the activity of nutrient competition. Plant pathogens
have evolved a variety of strategies for extracting nutrients from
their hosts (Vogel, Raab, Somerville, & Somerville, 2004),