EFFECT OF POMEGRANATE (Punica granatumL.) FRUITS PEEL ON SOME PHYTOPATHOGENIC FUNGI AND CONTROL OF TOMATO DAMPING-OFF

Pomegranate peel powder and its extract were used to study their efficiency against damping-off disease caused by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. lycopersici. In vitro, methanolic extract of pomegranate peel caused inhibitory effect to the linear growth of different phytopathogenic fungi isolated from different hosts including: Botrytis cinerea, Colletotrichum dematium, F. oxysporum, F. solani, Phoma sp. and Rhizoctonia solani. Also, Pomegranate peel extract (PPE) effectively decreased linear growth and spore germination of F. oxysporum and greatest decrease was recorded at 4000 ppm under greenhouse conditions. Application of pomegranate peel powder as seed treatment or soil treatment deceased pre and post-emergence damping-off caused by F. oxysporum f. sp. lycopersici compared with untreated infected control. Treating tomato seedlings or soil with peel extract before sowing provided a good protection against damping off and soil treatment was more effective than seedling treatment. Methanolic extract of pomegranate peel revealed that it contained different compounds of antifungal activity including three flavonoids, three tannins, four phenolic compounds, one glycosides along with four sterols.