Smart Bio-Protection: Precision Imaging of Endophyte-Induced Resistance Against Sclerotium Wilt in Rice from Lebak Swamplands, South Sumatra

Department of Plant Pests and Diseases, Faculty of Agriculture, Sriwijaya University, Ogan Ilir, South Sumatra, Indonesia

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Abstract

Lebak swamplands in South Sumatra possess significant agricultural potential but are highly vulnerable to soil-borne pathogens such as Sclerotium wilt, which threatens early rice establishment. Conventional visual disease assessments often lack sufficient sensitivity for early diagnosis, reducing the effectiveness of environmentally friendly mitigation strategies. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of native Lebak swampland endophytes in inducing systemic resistance against Sclerotium wilt in rice seedlings using precision image analysis for early disease detection. Under controlled conditions, rice seedlings were inoculated with selected native endophyte strains and subsequently challenged with Sclerotium pathogens. High-resolution image analysis was employed to monitor and quantify changes in greenhouse index and canopy uniformity by comparing treated seedlings with untreated control. The analytical approach detected physiological stress indicators approximately 14 days before visible wilting symptoms appeared. The results showed that endophyte-treated seedlings exhibited delayed symptom development and reduced disease severity by 80% with a severity of 15% at 28 days after inoculated compared (DAI) compared with 75% in untreated plants. Quantitative imaging data further demonstrated that the native endophytes enhanced the physiological defense responses of rice seedlings, as indicated by higher greenness index value and improved canopy stability. In conclusion, integrating native biological agents with digital monitoring technology provided an effective smart bio-protection strategy for seedling management in marginal ecosystems. These findings support the use of computational imaging for objective evaluation of biological control efficacy in sustainable lebak swampland agriculture.