Testing the effect of Thymus Vulgaris plant extract on Alternaria alternata fungs

Abstract

The study examined the effect of the biological efficacy of the alcoholic and water extracts of Thymus vulgaris leaves against the fungus Alternaria alternate. The pathogen was isolated from an infected plant sample of Citrus aurantium leaves, collected from a farm in the city of Derna. In the laboratory of the Plant Production Techniques Department / Higher Institute of Agricultural Techniques Derna, the results showed differences between the treatments. The inhibitory efficacy of the extract against the studied fungus depended on the type of extract (water - alcoholic) and whether it was normal or nano. The alcoholic extract showed an inhibition a concentration of 15% with a medium growth area of 104.14 mm² for the fungus, compared to the water extract with a medium growth area of 143.28 mm² for the fungus. In the case of nano treatments, they showed a higher inhibitory effect compared to the control, with a medium growth area of 58.78 mm² for the nano water extract and 41.51 mm² for the nano alcoholic extract. There were no significant differences between the nano treatments among themselves. The medium growth area of the fungal colony was inversely proportional to the increase in the concentration of the extract compared to the other concentrations. Previous studies have indicated that thyme has a high inhibitory effect against a group of fungi.