| Summary: | The capability of endophytic <i>Trichoderma</i> spp. to reduce sheath blight disease in rice caused by <i>Rhizoctonia solani</i> was assessed under the growth conditions established by practices of the System of Rice Intensification (SRI), compared to those of standard irrigated rice cultivation. Rice seeds inoculated with a local isolate of the fungus <i>Trichoderma asperellum</i> SL2 were grown under respective SRI and conventional conditions with the inoculated or uninoculated plants and then infected with the pathogen <i>R. solani</i>. It was seen that inoculation with this strain of <i>Trichoderma</i> protected rice plants against <i>R. solani</i> infection while enhancing plant growth, photosynthetic rate, and stomatal conductance. The biocontrol effectiveness of inoculation with a particular strain of <i>Trichoderma</i> was significantly greater under SRI management compared to conventional cultivation. This is the first report on how a crop management system, in this case, SRI, can influence the biocontrol effectiveness of <i>Trichoderma</i> spp.
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