Efficacy of Botanical Mixture and Fungicides to Combat Sigatoka Disease in Banana Cultivation

Black Sigatoka disease caused by Mycosphaerella fijiensis seriously threatens banana cultivation worldwide. This infirmity is controlled by the recurrent application of synthetic fungicides, which leads to several adverse effects. Plant extracts with antifungal potential have long been investigated as they contain secondary bioactive compounds for protecting crops from microbial infection. This study compared the antifungal activities of both botanical mixtures and recommended fungicides to control Black Sigatoka in banana. Laboratory and field studies were conducted to assess the antifungal activity of the botanical mix prepared from eight different herbal plant parts against M. fijiensis, with two recommended fungicides as the positive control. In vitro results showed that the radial growth of the fungus was significantly impaired (P<0.05.) by the addition of the botanical mixture, fungicides, and combination of the botanical mixture (BM) and fungicides in the PDA media. Mycosphaerella fijiensis differed in their reaction to the BM and fungicides, and combination of BM and fungicides, but on the whole, growth inhibition increased with the concentration. In field experiments, all the treatments reduced the disease incidence significantly compared to the unsprayed control, where the disease severity index (DSI) increased from 43.88 to 67.77 within 28 days. After the first spray, the botanical mixture and fungicides (Chlorothalonil and Carbendazim) reduced the disease severity index to 39.7, 41.19, and 44.44, respectively. Fungicides and combinations of Chlorothalonil + BM and Carbendazim + BM showed the lowest DSI, 34.07 and 35.83, respectively. The results show that combining the synthetic and botanical mixture is more effective for controlling the disease. The study reveals the possibility of utilizing a botanical mixture as an integrated approach to manage Black Sigatoka disease more efficiently and in an eco-friendly manner.