Bioactive phenolic allelochemicals from mulberry leaf litter through bioassay-guided fractionation and their...

Leaf litter may prevent related plants from growing through the release of natural bioactive allelochemicals into agroecosystems, which may also be employed as sustainable bioherbicides. The current study was carried out to assess mulberry leaf litter bioherbicidal capabilities and identify allelochemicals responsible for phytotoxic action through bioassay-guided fractionation. The findings showed that mulberry leaf aqueous and fractions of methanolic extract considerably reduced garden cress germination and early seedling growth by as much as 90%. Eleven allelochemicals [p-coumaric acid (the predominant), salicylic acid, vanillin, protocatechuic acid, vanillic acid, sinapic acid, 4-hydroxybenzoic acid, syringic acid, 2,4-dihydroxy benzoic acid, gallic acid, and m-hydroxy benzaldehyde (the lowest)] were identified in mulberry leaf extract. The findings suggest the presence of 11 phytotoxic phenolic allelochemicals in mulberry leaf litter, which may affect the co-cultivation of mulberry with associated crops in agroecosystems, and may also be exploited as future eco-friendly bioherbicides like Beloukha^TM and WeedLock^TM.