Tripartite combinational effects of Alhagi maurorum plant extract, essential oil, and carbendazim against Alternaria and Penicillium spp. in post-harvest of Citrus fruits

Zeynab Fotoohiyan, Fatemeh Shahdadi, Riyaz Z. Sayyed, Ali Salehi Sardoei, Bahman Fazeli-Nasab

Sydowia 76: 137-147

Published online on July 16th, 2024

Citrus fruits are among the commercial fruits most consumed and most affected by fungal rot during storage. Chemical management of fungal diseases poses numerous health and environmental concerns. Biological control using plant extracts has been considered a safe, eco-friendly, and sustainable management practice. The present study aimed to investigate the effects of Alhagi maurorum extract and pesticide (carbendazim) on fungal pathogens. Fungal pathogens were isolated from infected fruits and identified based on morphological characteristics. These isolates were tested for their pathogenicity in citrus fruits. The antifungal activity of these preparations was performed using diffusion assay. Morphological characters identified these isolates as Penicillium digitatum, Penicillium italicum, and Alternaria sp. These isolates produced characteristic infections in citrus fruits. All the preparations, A. maurorum extract, carbendazim, and a combination of these two exhibited antifungal activity against P. digitatum, Penicillium italicum, and Alternaria sp. However, the combination of A. maurorum essence and carbendazim produced pronounced effects (50 % more) against fungal pathogens. The results showed that the combined effect of Alhagi maurorum essence and extract with carbendazim effectively controls fungal pathogens infection of orange and tangerine during storage.

Keywords: camelthorn, citrus rot, lemon, orange, pesticide, tangerine.

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