Antifungal activity of five medical herbs on the plant pathogenic fungus Rhizoctonia solani

Rhizoctonia canker, caused by Rhizoctonia solani, is found in growing potato fields. Since there is no commercial resistance cultivar, the tubers are sterilized with systemic fungicides. However, because of environmental damages, scientist attempts to replace the chemical agent with the most environmentally friendly compounds. This study was aimed to evaluate antifungal activity of five medical herbs against Rhizoctonia solani. The study aimed to investigate antifungal effects of five native plants (Satureja bachtiarica, Zataria Multifera, Achillea millefolium, Ziziphora clinopodioides and Thymus daenensis) on Rhizoctonia canker. After collection of the plants from Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari Province, they were cleaned (washing and drying) and extracted by ethanol 80%. The antifungal activity was then evaluated using disc diffusion method. The most of extractions showed desirable antifungal effects against Rhizoctonia solani. The widest (18.93 mm) and narrowest (6.66 mm) inhibition hallows were observed when Rhizoctonia solani were exposed to the disks containing extracts of Zataria Multifera and Ziziphora clinopodioides, respectively. According to the results, the extracts isolated from the aforementioned plants are able to inhibit the growth of pathogenic Rhizoctonia solani.