Phytopathogenic fungal inhibitors from celery seeds

Extract of celery (Apium graveolens L.) seeds was investigated against phytopathogenic fungi. The light petroleum extract showed promising inhibition activities in the tests against Rhizoctonia solani and Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. vasinfecum. Chromatographic separation of the extract gave 19 fractions, one of which, QCZ-4, possessed significant inhibitory rates of 64.6%, 88.4% and 54.7% at a concentration of 100 ppm against R. solani, F. oxysporium f. sp. vasinfecum and Alternaria alternata, respectively. Major components in the active fraction were identified by GC-MS as p-(2-aminoethyl)phenol (39.7%), 3-(3,4-dimethybenzoyl) propionic acid (32.6%) and p-heptylphenol (26.9%).