Evaluation of Antifungal Activity of Plant Extracts against Papaya Anthracnose (Colletotrichum gloeosporioides)

Antifungal activities of nineteen plant extracts were tested in 2010 with the objectives of screening potential plant extracts against Colletotrichum gloeosporioides under in vitro and anthracnose caused by Colletotrichum gloeosporioides, on papaya (Carica papaya L.) during storage. Ethyl acetate extracts of Lantana camara resulted in the highest inhibition (with inhibition zone of 35.3 mm) and showed strong activity against C. gloeosporioides. Inhibition levels of spore germination that reached 88.7, 85.8, 85.1 and 84.6% were recorded over the control by extracts of Lantana camara, Lantana viburnoides, Echinops sp. and Ruta chalepensis. Four aqueous extracts were evaluated for control of anthracnose under in vivo for 14 days, and Echinops sp. (25%) was found to be most effective in the reduction of disease development and maintaining the overall quality of papaya fruit. Further studies on isolation and characterization of the active (antifungal) compounds are needed.