Vol. 9, Special Issue 9, Part C (2025)

The aromatic plants namely ginger, turmeric and eucalyptus find widespread use in culinary applications for flavour, aroma, color, medicinal properties and industrial applications. Antimicrobials from Ginger, turmeric and eucalyptus plants have been widely used for controlling the growth of food spoilage microorganisms. However, the efficacy of the extracts and oils from these aromatic plants in controlling the growth of fruit and vegetable spoilage microorganisms has not been studied much. An attempt was made in this trial to study the efficacy of different concentrations of Ginger oil, Eucalyptus oil and Turmeric leaf extract oil in controlling the growth of fruit and vegetable spoilage microorganisms under in vitro conditions. Ginger oil, Eucalyptus oil and Turmeric leaf extract oil completely inhibited the growth of Aspergillus at all the tested concentrations (100, 50, 25, 12.5 and 6.25%) at both 7 and 14 days after incubation (DAI). Efficacy of different concentrations of Ginger oil and Turmeric leaf extract oil had a variable effect on the control of Penicillium. Eucalyptus oil completely inhibited the growth of Penicillium at all the tested concentrations at both 7 and 14 DAI. Efficacy of Ginger oil and Turmeric leaf extract oil reduced with the decrease in their concentrations. The current study has shown that different concentrations of Ginger oil, Eucalyptus oil and Turmeric leaf extract oil have been effective in controlling the growth of Penicillium and Aspergillus under in vitro conditions. The effective concentrations of these products should be checked for their efficacy in controlling the growth of Penicillium and Aspergillus by carrying out shelf life studies.