Aims: To develop a post-harvest treatment system against post-harvest fungal pathogens of banana using natural products. Methods and Results: Colletotrichum musae was isolated and identified as the causative agent responsible for anthracnose peel blemishes while three fungi, namely Lasiodiplodia theobromae, C. musae and Fusarium proliferatum, were identified as causative agents responsible for crown rot. During the liquid bioassay, cinnamon [Cinnamomum zeylanicum (L.)] leaf, bark and clove [Syzygium aromaticum (L.)] oils were tested against the anthracnose and crown rot pathogens. The test oils were fungistatic and fungicidal against the test pathogens within a range of 0AE03)0AE11% (v ⁄ v). Conclusions: Cinnamon and clove essential oils could be used as antifungal agents to manage post harvest fungal diseases of banana. Significance and Impact of the Study: Cinnamon and clove essential oil could be used as alternative post-harvest treatments on banana. Banana treated with essential oil is chemically safe and acceptable to consumers. Benomyl (Benlate), which is currently used to manage fungal pathogens, can cause adverse health effects and could be replaced with volatile essential oils. INTRODUCTIONBanana is grown on a large scale in many districts of Sri Lanka due to its nutritional value and export potential. There are 29 cultivated varieties available in Sri Lanka and certain varieties are air-freighted in limited quantities to Europe, Middle Eastern countries and the Maldives (Chamara et al. 2000;Perera and Karunaratne 2000). Storage of banana is made difficult by the growth of fungi which cause post-harvest diseases such as anthracnose and crown rot. The average post-harvest loss of banana in Sri Lanka due to post-harvest diseases, mechanical damage and improper storage (during 1998) was 20%, i.e. 76 973 metric tones (Sarananda 2000). Crown rot is a disease complex caused by the pathogenic fungi Colletotrichum musae, Lasiodiplodia theobromae, Fusarium proliferatum and Verticillium theobromae (Stour 1972;Finlay and Brown 1993;Ploetz et al. 1994). Colletotrichum musae is the causative organism of anthracnose in banana, which causes the development of black circular ⁄ lenticular spots during ripening (Ploetz et al. 1994). Benzimidazole fungicides such as Benomyl (Benlate) are being used on banana as a fruit dip for effective control of post-harvest disease in several countries, including Sri Lanka (Perera and Karunaratne 2000). According to the Benomyl Fact Sheet, the United States Environmental Protection Agency has classified Benomyl as a possible human carcinogen which can also act as a chronic and a reproductive toxicant (http://www.pan-uk.org/pestnews/ actives/benomyl.htm). Therefore, the fruit sector urgently needs to develop alternative post-harvest treatments that are chemical free and acceptable to consumers. Essential oils are complex volatile compounds produced in different plant parts, which are known to have various functions in plants including conferring pest and disease resistance (Goubran and ...

Mature Embul (Musa, AAB) bananas were treated with emulsions of either cinnamon bark or leaf (Cinnamomum zeylanicum) or clove (Syzygium aromaticum) oils to control postharvest diseases, packed under modified atmosphere (MA) using low-density polyethylene (0.075 mm, LDPE) bags, and stored in a cold room (14 ± 1°C, 90% RH) or at ambient temperature (28 ± 2°C). The effects of the essential oils on post-harvest diseases; physicochemical properties and organoleptic properties were determined and compared with controls and bananas treated with benomyl. Treatments with cinnamon bark and leaf oils controlled crown rot, whereas clove oil treatment did not affect crown rot development. Treatment with emulsions of cinnamon oils combined with MA packaging can be recommended as a safe, cost-effective method for extending the storage life of Embul bananas up to 21 days in a cold room and 14 days at 28 ± 2°C without affecting the organoleptic and physico-chemical properties.