Pesticidal and Medicinal Value of Turmeric and Ginger in Tanzania and Their Antifungal Activity against Phytopathogens
Loading...
Date
2025-02
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Scientific research an academic publisher
Abstract
Use of synthetic pesticides to manage crop pests has had a toll on human
health, environmental safety and farmer’s income creating a need for alterna-
tive crop protection strategies. Botanical pesticides have been reported to be
effective in managing crop pests, and a number of them have been formulated
and commercialized. This study was conducted in North-Eastern Tanzania to
establish the pesticidal and medicinal value of turmeric (
Curcuma longa) and
ginger (
Zingiber officinale). Purposive sampling was adopted to select and in-
terview 167 respondents drawn from farmers, traders, pharmaceutical shops,
agro-shop operators and consumers of turmeric and ginger. Ginger and tur-
meric rhizomes were also collected for extraction, antifungal assay and bio-
chemical analysis. Results showed that majority of the respondents were aware
of the medicinal value of ginger and turmeric, with 59.5% having used the
plants to treat respiratory related infections and healing skin surface and in-
ternal wounds. About 14% of farmers were aware of and had used aqueous
botanical preparations from neem, moringa and
Tephrosia to manage insect
pests. Only 2.7% of farmers had used ginger powder as a protective insecticide
on stored grains. Ginger and turmeric rhizome extracts showed high antifun-
gal activity against
Pythium (83% - 95%),
Fusarium oxysporum f. sp.
lycoper-
sici (34% - 52%) and
Alternaria solani (38% - 53%). A GC-MS analysis of gin-
ger and turmeric extracts showed presence of
α-zingiberene,
β-sesquiphellan-
drene,
α-farnesene,
ar-curcumene,
α-copaene,
ar-tumerone and curlone. This
study recommends that ginger and turmeric extracts be considered for devel-
opment of a botanical pesticide and especially for management of damping off
diseases.
Sustainable Development Goals
SDG - 2: Zero Hunger
SDG - 3: Good Health and Well-being
SDG - 12: Responsible Consumption and Production
Keywords
Botanical Pesticides, Curcuma longa, Medicinal Plants, Spices, Zingiber officinale