Antifungal activity of some plant extracts.
Narayana Bhat, Sivaprakakasam M. K., Jeyarajan R.
Author Affiliation: Department of Plant Pathology, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore 641?003, Tamil Nadu, India.
Indian Journal of Forestry 17 : 10-14
Abstract : Cold and hot water leaf extracts of 25 plant species comprising horticultural crops (including multipurpose trees), weeds, forage crops and medicinal plants at 5% (group I) and 30 forest tree species at 10% (group II) were tested against the brinjal [aubergine, Solanum melongena] damping off pathogen, Pythium aphanidermatum in PDA cultures. None of the leaf extracts gave complete inhibition of the pathogen. However, for group I plants, maximum inhibition was obtained with cold water extracts of Polyalthia longifolia (56.6%). Desmodium purpureum and Mangifera indica did not show any inhibitory effects. Among the hot water extracts tested, Parthenium hysterophorus gave maximum mean inhibition of 48.3%, with D. purpureum the least effective (2.7%). In the group II plants cold water extracts of Caesalpinia pauciflora were highly inhibitory (85.5%) followed by Manilkara kauki (78.8%). Berrya cordifolia did not show any inhibitory effect. Hot water leaf extracts of Eucalyptus microtheca showed 90% inhibition, while Spathodea campanulata was the least effective.