Sections (2–4 mm2) of infected banana tissues were cut
from anthracnose and crown rot disease areas and surface
sterilized using NaOCl (3% (w ⁄ v)) for 3 min. After three
serial washings in sterile distilled water, the tissues were
placed on potato dextrose agar (PDA) plates and incubated
at room temperature (28 ± 2 C) for 7 d. The fungal
colonies which appeared were subcultured to obtain pure
cultures. To confirm the pathogenicity of each isolated
pathogen, ripe hands of healthy embul cultivars were
selected. Banana hands were surface sterilized using 70%
alcohol. The crowns of banana were then wound inoculated
with mycelial plugs (5 mm) of L. theobromae and spores of
C. musae and F. proliferatum (1 · 106). A few selected
fingers of the same hands were inoculated with a spore
suspension of C. musae. Non-inoculated banana hands were
used as the control. Banana hands were then incubated in a
moist glass tank at room temperature (28 ± 2 C) for 72 h.
The symptoms of anthracnose and crown rot were recorded
and the pathogens re-isolated, cultured on PDA and
vegetative and reproductive characters compared with the
previously isolated and identified pathogens. The test was
repeated three times.
To determine the fungistatic effect of test essential oils