The development of ideas in biological control applied to forest products

After giving an overview of biological control agents and their application to forest products, the review considers the main biocontrol mechanisms that are thought to operate in wood. Competition for nutrients, antibiosis, mycoparasitism and production of extracellular enzymes have all been implicated in the biological control of wood decay fungi, although the relative importance of these potential mechanisms in vivo remains obscure. Attempts at biologically controlling basidiomycetes in forest products on a commercial scale have met with limited success and the environmental factors influencing efficacy are reviewed. It is concluded that the chances of achieving successful biocontrol of decay rely as much on appreciating the limitations of biological treatments as upon a comprehensive understanding of the mechanisms involved.