Efficacy of Some Plant Extracts in Controlling Seed-Borne Fungal Infections of Mustard

Abstract

Efficacy of various concentrations of four plant extracts prepared from garlic, Neem leaf, ginger and onion bulb on reduction of seed-borne fungi was evaluated. Among the treatments, garlic extract preparations (1:0, 1:1 and 1:2) and fungicide Rovral (0.25% of seed weight) had shown to enhance seed germination remarkably compared to the other treatment. The percent reduction of fungal incidence achieved with three concentrations of the plant extracts varied from 57.0-72.0% for garlic extracts, 48.4-57.0% for Neem leaf extract, 23.6-32.2% for ginger extract, and 10.7-15.1 for onion bulb extract. The fungi isolated from the mustard seeds included species of Alternaria, Aspergillus, Chaetomium, Curvularia, Fusarium, Penicillium and Rhizopus. It was also found that garlic extract was most effective in controlling the seed-borne fungi among the plant extracts studies. The effectiveness of concentrated (1:0) preparation of garlic extract was comparable to the fungicide Rovral. In addition, Neem leaf extract was moderately effective in removal of mycoflora of mustard seeds, while ginger and onion bulb extracts were the least effective in removal of the seed-borne fungi.

Keywords: Mustard, Seed-borne fungi, Plant extracts, Seed germination, Control of seed-borne fungi

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/bjm.v23i2.887

Bangladesh J Microbiol, Volume 23, Number 2, December 2006, pp 168-170