Plants harbor different microbial communities on and in
their organs. The differences reflect not only the various
environmental conditions to which plant parts are exposed but
also organ-specific expression profiles of genes, proteins, and
metabolites. Consequently, the phyllosphere microbiota can
differ strongly from root-associated communities. We
hypothesized that the grapevine phyllosphere is a valuable
source of biocontrol bacteria, whose adaptation to the aerial
plant environment may enable them to reach their full protective
potential against foliar pathogens. In previous work, we isolated
phyllosphere bacteria and showed that many were very effective
against such pathogens in vitro, inhibiting mycelial growth and
spore development. Here, we investigated the biocontrol ability
of these bacteria in leaf disc assays against two foliar
pathogens, Botrytis cinerea (gray mold) and Plasmopara viticola
(downy mildew). Our results showed that 40 strains out of 46
affected at least one pathogen by altering spore physiology,
reducing disease progression, and/or stimulating plant defenses.
Among these strains, 27 affected both pathogens, and 20 also
stimulated plant defenses. Because bacterial consortia might
perform better than single strains, we compared individual
bacteria with associations of up to three strains. When
combined, bacteria from the genera Bacillus, Cupriavidus, and
Herbaspirillum showed improved efficacy in vitro against
B. cinerea and in whole-plant experiments against P. viticola,
resulting in stronger protection than that obtained with individual
strains, likely due to complementary effects on pathogen
development and plant defense stimulation. These data suggest
that phyllosphere bacteria could provide an effective and
sustainable tool for managing foliar diseases