ESSENTIAL OILS FOR CONTROLING SOUR ROT IN CITRUS (Geotrichum citri-aurantii)

• Grant number: 24/14709-6
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: October 01, 2024
• End date: September 30, 2025
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Agronomy - Crop Science
• Principal Investigator: Evandro Henrique Schinor
• Grantee: Maria Clara Chignolli
• Host Institution: Centro de Ciências Agrárias (CCA). Universidade Federal de São Carlos (UFSCAR). Araras , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Citrus farming makes up a large part of Brazilian agribusiness, with emphasis on orange cultivation, but it is highly susceptible to pathogens that affect post-harvest, such as the Geotrichum citri-aurantii fungus that causes sour rot, resulting in losses in quality and commercialization of the fruits. . In Brazil, there are no products registered to control this pathogen. Therefore, natural products are being sought as an alternative means of controlling the disease. The objective of this research is to analyze the action of essential oils (EOs) of Pêra orange, clove, cinnamon and lemongrass as a control for sour rot. In vitro tests will be carried out to evaluate the fungicidal effect of EOs extracted from bark, leaves, fruits and dried flower buds at concentrations 1, 2, 4, 8 and 16 (¿L mL-1) including a negative control (0 ¿L mL-1 ), aiming to inhibit mycelial growth, sporulation and germination of conidia of the fungus Geotrichum citri-aurantii. The in vitro test will be carried out in a completely randomized design in a 4x6 factorial scheme. Furthermore, an in vivo experiment will be conducted to evaluate the preventive and curative effect of EOs, using the best doses observed in the in vitro test, in ripe fruits inoculated with the fungus, a negative control and a non-inoculated control, in an entirely Randomized in a 6x2 factorial design.