In vitro evaluation with essential oils in watermelon (citrullus lanatus) and its biological optimum, Guayas province.

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to evaluate in vitro the essential oils of Equisetum arvence and Urtica dioica as fungicides at different concentrations on phytopathogenic fungi in watermelon. Samples were collected in Empalme, Balzar and Pedro Carbo, in established crops that presented diseases. These samples were taken to the phytopathology laboratory of the Agrarian University of Ecuador where the samples were identified and isolated, duly disinfected in Petri boxes with PDA culture medium, and the different concentrations were applied for each treatment. For this research work, two statistical designs were used, under controlled conditions (laboratory), the complete randomized design with factorial arrangement (A*B*C) 3 replicates, consisting of 3 pathogens, 3 doses, 2 treatments with 3 replicates, and for the trial conducted with watermelon seedlings, the complete randomized design (CRD) was used, which consisted of 3 phytopathogens (treatments) and 10 plants for each pathogen including the control (replicates). According to the statistics, the treatment with the highest percentage of inhibition was Urtica dioica essential oil with 36.19% and a concentration of 300 microliters with 34.38%. To see the effect of the treatment on the watermelon seedlings, pathogenicity tests were carried out, where the plants were inoculated with the pathogens found, then the best treatment was applied on the seedlings, which resulted that the pathogen Curvularia sp and Colletotrichum sp had less severity with 2.7%.