ISSN: 0215-6334 | e-ISSN: 1907-770X The Southeast Asian Journal of Tropical Biology Vol.
32 No.
2, 2025: 143 - 150
DOI: 10.
11598/btb.
Research Paper THE POTENTIAL OF Syzigium aromaticum L.
CONTROL LEAF SPOT DISEASE (Cercospora capsic.
IN CAYENNE PEPPER (Capsicum frutescens L.
Yenny Muliani1.
Dwi Susanto2*.
Ida Adviany1.
N Tita Nursinta1.
Debby Ustari1 Department of Agrotechnology.
Faculty of Agriculture.
Universitas Islam Nusantara.
Bandung 40286.
Indonesia Department of Agrotechnology.
Faculty of Science and Technology.
Universitas Halim Sanusi.
Bandung 40116.
Indonesia
ARTICLE HIGLIGHTS
ABSTRACT
A In preliminary lab tests, clove leaf extract clearly slowed C.
capsici growth.
A Field trials assessed its potential to reduce leaf spot disease in cayenne A Applying concentrations above 15 g/L tended to lower the observed disease A The same concentration range was also linked to an increase in leaf number.
A However, low field disease incidence limited detectable yield responses.
Cayenne pepper (Capsicum frutescens L.
) is a spice plant with good potential for development in Indonesia due to its high market demand.
However, several challenges hinder the increase in its production, one of which is plant disease.
A major disease affecting cayenne pepper is leaf spot, caused by the fungus Cercospora capsici Heald & F.
Wolf.
Although chemical pesticides can effectively control this disease, they have negative effects on the environment.
The clove tree (Syzygium aromaticum L.
) is commonly cultivated for its dried flower buds, which have various uses.
Additionally, due to its chemical contents, the leaves of the clove tree have the potential to reduce the intensity of leaf spot disease.
Therefore, the aims of this study were: .
to determine the effects of clove leaf extract on reducing the intensity of C.
capsici infection in cayenne pepper, and .
to determine the most effective concentration of the extract for disease reduction.
The experiment used a randomized block design (RBD) with five treatments and five replications, namely: A = control .
ater onl.
B = 10 g clove leaf extract/L water.
C = 15 g clove leaf extract/L water.
D = 20 g clove leaf extract/L water, and E = 25 g clove leaf extract/L The results showed that the application of S.
aromaticum leaf extract reduced the intensity of leaf spot disease caused by C.
although it did not significantly affect the yield of cayenne pepper.
The lack of effect on yield was attributed to the overall low disease intensity across all treatments, including the control.
Article Information Received : 12 July 2024 Revised : 26 March 2025 Accepted : 10 May 2025 *Corresponding author, e-mail:
dwsus123@gmail.
Keywords: biopesticides, cayenne pepper.
Cercospora capsici, leaf spot
Syzigium aromaticum
INTRODUCTION
Chili contains bioactive compounds such as capsaicinoids, phenols, flavonoids, and vitamin C (Kusnadi et al.
The capsaicin content in chili peppers is beneficial for relieving headaches, reducing joint inflammation, and promoting overall health (Winarto & Wisnuwati 2.
Cayenne pepper (Capsicum frutescens L.
), a type of chili, is commonly used in Indonesia as a cooking spice, an ingredient in sambal .
hili past.
, or even consumed fresh.
The demand for cayenne pepper in Indonesia tended to increase from 2018 to 2022, according to data from the Central Agency of Statistics (Armavillia 2.
In addition to meeting local needs, cayenne pepper is also exported to countries such as Malaysia and Singapore (Budi et al.
To meet this high demand, production must be Although the harvest area and production of cayenne pepper in Indonesia fluctuated during 2018 - 2022, both showed an overall upward trend.
However, this level of production has not fully met domestic and industrial needs.
Several obstacles hinder cayenne pepper farmers from increasing production, including unpredictable weather, fluctuating prices, and the presence of pests and diseases (Rismayanti et al.
One of the most common diseases affecting cayenne pepper plants is Cercospora leaf spot, caused by the fungus Cercospora capsici Heald & Wolf, which can result in yield losses of 30 40% (Lestari & Aini 2.
BIOTROPIA Vol.
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2, 2025
Symptoms of C.
capsici leaf spot disease typically appear as circular lesions .
p to 1 cm in diamete.
on the leaves, brown to black in color, with small white spots .
5 - 1.
0 m.
at the center that gradually enlarge.
Infected chili plants develop necrosis and are sometimes accompanied by chlorosis on the leaves (Adedire et al.
pathogenic fungi were washed under running water to remove any adhering dirt.
The leaves were then cut into pieces measuring 2 y 2 cm.
Surface disinfection was carried out by immersing the leaf pieces in 5% chlorine solution for 1 minute, followed by 70% alcohol for 30 seconds, and then rinsing them three times with sterile water.
Clove leaves contain active antibacterial and antifungal compounds, making them potentially useful for controlling plant diseases (Lambiju et al.
Djaenuddin et al.
reported that clove leaf extract had a positive effect in inhibiting the development of Bipolaris maydis under laboratory Similarly.
Hizrianti et al.
found that clove leaf oil at a concentration of 0.
dissolved in PDA medium, completely inhibited the mycelial growth of Alternaria solani after 7 days of incubation at room temperature, with an inhibition rate of 100%.
The sterilized leaf pieces were dried on filter paper and subsequently cultured on PDA .
otato dextrose aga.
After 7 days of incubation, fungal growth was observed on the culture.
The pathogen was then identified based on its macroscopic and microscopic characteristics.
However, the use of clove leaf extract to control Cercospora capsici Heald & F.
Wolf, the causal agent of leaf spot on cayenne pepper (Capsicum frutescens L.
), has not yet been tested.
Therefore, the objectives of this study were: .
to evaluate the effects of clove leaf extract on reducing the intensity of C.
capsici infection in cayenne pepper, and .
to determine the most effective concentration of the extract for reducing disease intensity.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
The main materials used in this experiment were cayenne pepper seeds of the Sonar cultivar, goat manure.
NPK fertilizer, clove leaves, detergent .
sed as a biopesticide adhesiv.
, and water.
The study employed a randomized block design (RBD) consisting of five treatments with five replications The biopesticide application treatments were: A = control .
ater onl.
B = 10 g clove leaf extract/L water.
C = 15 g clove leaf extract/L water.
D = 20 g clove leaf extract/L water, and E = 25 g clove leaf extract/L water.
Preliminary Test Preliminary tests consisted of isolating and identifying fungus, simple Postulate Koch test, and concentration test.
Isolating and Identifying Fungus The isolation and identification of the fungus causing leaf spot disease in cayenne pepper plants were conducted using the following steps.
First, leaves showing symptoms of infection by Macroscopic identification of the disease was conducted by observing the color of the fungal colony, as well as the direction and shape of its growth.
For microscopic identification, a small portion of the pure culture was placed on a microscope slide containing a drop of sterile distilled water.
A cover slip was then carefully placed over the sample to avoid the formation of air bubbles.
The slide was subsequently observed under a microscope to examine the morphological characteristics of the pathogen.
Simple Postulat Koch Test The pathogenic fungus isolated from infected cayenne pepper leaves was inoculated onto healthy cayenne pepper plants.
KochAos postulates were applied to assess the phytopathogenic characteristics of the obtained isolate.
The fungal isolate was first grown in pure culture, then inoculated onto healthy plants and observed for the development of disease symptoms.
Once symptoms appeared, the pathogen was re-isolated from the infected plant tissue using the same method described previously (Sudiartini et al.
Concentration Test Concentration tests were conducted to determine the most effective clove leaf extract concentration for reducing the intensity of Cercospora capsici Heald & F.
Wolf leaf spot disease.
These concentrations were later used as treatments for applying clove leaf extract to cayenne pepper plants in vivo.
The concentrations tested were 10 g/L, 15 g/L, 20 g/L, 25 g/L, and a control for comparison.
The concentration test was performed following the method described by Andriyani and Purwantisari .
Clove leaf extract at each concentration was added to sterile Petri dishes containing PDA medium that had been previously The potential of Syzigium aromaticum L.
to control leaf spot disease Ae Muliani et al.
sterilized and melted, using a ratio of 1 mL of extract to 10 mL of medium.
The mixture was then gently shaken to ensure even distribution of the extract in the medium.
A purified culture of C.
capsici was obtained using the cork borer method and placed at the center of each Petri dish.
The dishes were then incubated at room temperature.
The diameter of the fungal colonies was measured daily over a period of six days to assess the effect of each extract Variables Observed Three variables were observed in this research, namely disease intensity, number of leaves and plant yield.
nCy ycuycu 100% NCY I = disease intensity (%).
n = the number of plant samples.
y = the value of score.
N = the number of plant samples observed.
Y = the highest score used.
Assessing disease intensity allows us to determine the severity of the disease on the plants and to compare its effects across different treatments.
Number of Leaves The number of leaves was counted before and after the application of the biopesticide at oneweek intervals.
This variable is important, as leaf count reflects the plantAos photosynthetic capacity and helps evaluate the effects of the treatment.
Yield Total yield was weighed from five harvests.
This variable measures crop productivity and reflects the effects of the treatments.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Preliminary Tests Based on macroscopic and microscopic observations in the laboratory, the pathogen was confirmed to be Cercospora capsici, as shown in Figures 1 and 2.
These figures indicate that the hyphae of C.
capsici after 7 days of isolation were whitish-dark in color, branched, and septate, with a somewhat rough mycelial structure.
According to Wakhidah et al.
, the conidia of Cercospora are rod-shaped, measuring 27.
5 - 90 AAm in length and 2.
5 - 3.
75 AAm in width.
Cercospora sp.
also has dark-colored conidiophores and conidia, with three or more septa.
The results of the Koch postulate test are shown in Figure 3.
The symptoms of Cercospora capsici Heald & F.
Wolf leaf spot disease appeared as brown, circular spots with a whitish center, resembling a frogAos eye.
These observations are consistent with Sucianto and Abas .
, who reported that C.
capsici causes small, round leaf spots measuring 25 - 0.
5 cm in diameter, with necrotic centers that dry out and dark gray coloration, while the edges remain brown.
The fungus also produces long, club-shaped conidia measuring 60 - 200 AAm y 3 - 5 AAm, with diameters of 3 - 12 AAm, and short, septate conidiophores measuring 1 - 3 AAm.
Coloni of C.
Figure 1 Macroscopic characteristic of fungus C.
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2, 2025
Septate hypha Branched Figure 2 Microscopic characteristics of fungus C.
Notes: a.
Septate hypha.
Branched conidiophore.
Symptom of leaf spot of sercospore Figure 3 Leaf spot caused by C.
Concentration Test The concentration test conducted on PDA medium demonstrated that clove leaf extract could inhibit the growth of C.
capsici in the laboratory (Fig.
Based on these preliminary results, it can be tentatively concluded that clove leaf extract inhibits the growth of the pathogen, and its effectiveness in controlling C.
capsici will be further evaluated in this study.
Figure 4 Inhibition of C.
capsici by different concentration of clove leaf extract Notes: .
= 0 g/L.
= 10 g/L.
= 15 g/L.
= 20 g/L.
= 25g/L.
The potential of Syzigium aromaticum L.
to control leaf spot disease Ae Muliani et al.
Table 1 Leaf spot disease intensity caused by C.
capsici in cayenne pepper Treatment .
oncentration of clove leaf extrac.
Before application A .
g/L wate.
B .
g/L wate.
C .
g/L wate.
D .
g/L wate.
E .
g/L wate.
Leaf spot disease intensity caused by C.
capsici (%) After application .
ays after planting/ DAP) Note: Values followed by the same letter are not significantly different according to DuncanAos Multiple Range Test (DMRT) at the 5% significance level.
Disease Intensity Observations of leaf spot disease intensity on cayenne pepper (Capsicum frutescens L.
) were conducted before and after biopesticide application at weekly intervals.
Observations began once the plants exhibited symptoms of leaf spot disease caused by the fungus C.
The results are presented in Table 1.
At 14 and 21 weeks after planting (WAP), disease intensity varied among the treatments.
This variation occurred because no treatments had been applied earlier, so the existing disease and its development could not be controlled.
21 WAP, disease intensity ranged from 2.
40% in the control to 9.
20% in treatment B.
By 28 WAP, no significant differences were observed among the treatments, which may be due to the time required for the clove leaf extract to affect leaf spot disease.
According to Faqy and Rustam .
, eugenol is a phenolic compound that evaporates easily, so multiple applications are necessary to observe its At 35 days after planting (DAP), the average leaf spot disease intensity began to show a noticeable difference, with treatment C exhibiting significantly lower intensity compared to the other treatments and the control.
Similarly, at 42 DAP and subsequent observations, treatment C consistently showed significantly lower disease intensity than the other treatments.
This is likely due to the antifungal effect of the clove leaf extract after multiple applications.
ernait et al.
reported that the eugenol content in clove can inhibit plant pests and diseases.
During the observation period, treatment A .
consistently exhibited the highest disease intensity compared to the other treatments.
This indicates that clove leaf extracts can control leaf spot disease, with effectiveness varying depending on the extract concentration.
According to Salam et al.
Cercospora leaf spot disease thrives in environments with temperatures below 28 AC, humidity above 92%, and soil pH between 5 The disease becomes more severe during wet weather or periods of high air humidity.
Observations at 70 DAP showed that leaf spot disease intensity tended to increase during the rainy season and under high humidity conditions.
Symptoms typically appeared first on older leaves and then spread to younger leaves.
Advanced lesions can cause leaves to become hollow, with white or pale centers and darkened edges.
Severe infections may result in yellowing and premature leaf drop (Devianto et al.
Among the treatments, the clove leaf extract concentration of 15 g/L was most effective in reducing disease intensity, resulting in an average intensity of 6.
27% at 70 DAP.
Number of Leaves Similar to disease intensity, the effects of C.
capsici on the number of leaves before treatment application .
and 21 DAP) could not be controlled and varied among individual plants.
At 28 DAP, the number of leaves differed, with treatment E showing the highest and treatment B the lowest values, as the treatments had not yet taken effect.
The application of the biopesticide influenced an increase in the number of leaves, likely due to the essential oils in clove leaves, which are known to promote leaf development.
The essential oil content in clove leaves has been reported to enhance leaf growth (Harni et al.
According to Jirovetz et al.
, clove leaf oil exhibits antioxidant activity, with eugenol as the major compound .
8%), followed by -caryophyllene, -humulene, and eugenyl acetate.
The number of chili plant leaves is presented in Table 2.
At 35 DAP, the average number of leaves had increased but did not differ significantly among BIOTROPIA Vol.
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the treatments.
This indicates that the treatments were beginning to take effect in reducing the disease, particularly for treatments B and C, which previously had the lowest leaf numbers.
From 42 DAP to the end of the observation period, treatments C.
D, and E showed effective concentrations of biopesticides in controlling Cercospora leaf spot disease compared to the control, resulting in a continued increase in the number of cayenne pepper leaves.
According to Thabet and Khalifa .
, clove oil contains compounds such as eugenol, acetyl eugenol, iso-eugenol, and caryophyllene, which have antibacterial and antifungal properties against various plant diseases.
Additionally.
Al-Askar and Rashad .
reported that clove extract at a concentration of 4% significantly reduced disease caused by Rhizoctonia solani on pea.
These findings suggested that higher concentrations of clove leaf extract promote leaf growth and help minimize leaf drop caused by C.
capsici leaf spot Observations from 49 DAP to 70 DAP showed that all treatments tended to increase the number of leaves.
Similarly.
Deden and Umiyati .
noted that increasing the concentration of biofungicides enhanced the number of leaves in shallot plants (Allium ascalonicum L.
Yield Cayenne pepper fruits were harvested five times, from 107 DAP to 119 DAP.
The data indicated no significant differences in yield among the treatments, as shown in Table 3.
Data from Table 1 revealed that disease intensities across all treatments, including the control, ranged from 47% to 13.
93%, which is categorized as low Consequently, the reduction in yield due to C.
capsici was minimal and did not differ significantly among the treatments.
The intensity of leaf spot disease tends to increase with higher rainfall intensity (Heald & F.
Wolf ).
Under severe infection, cayenne pepper leaves become damaged and fall off prematurely.
Leaf loss disrupts the plantAos photosynthetic process and can lead to reduced crop yields.
According to Inaya et al.
Cercospora sp.
leaf spot disease initially appears as small necrotic spots on the leaf surface, which later develop into irregular lesions and produce abundant conidia.
When the disease intensity caused by this fungal pathogen becomes severe, it can significantly impair photosynthesis and negatively affect both the quantity and quality of chili production.
Syafiruddin and Hilda .
also noted that pests and diseases attacking cayenne pepper plants are major factors contributing to yield reduction.
Table 2 Effects of C.
capsici on number of leaves of cayenne pepper Treatment A .
g/L wate.
B .
g/L wate.
C .
g/L wate.
D .
g/L wate.
E .
g/L wate.
Before application Number of leaves After application (DAP) Note: Values followed by the same letter are not significantly different according to DuncanAos Multiple Range Test (DMRT) at the 5% significance level.
Table 3 Yield of cayenne pepper per plant Treatment Yield per plant .
A .
g/L wate.
B .
g/L wate.
C .
g/L wate.
D .
g/L wate.
E .
g/L wate.
Note: Values followed by the same letter are not significantly different according to DuncanAos Multiple Range Test (DMRT) at the 5% significance level.
The potential of Syzigium aromaticum L.
to control leaf spot disease Ae Muliani et al.
CONCLUSION
The application of clove (Syzygium aromaticum ) leaf extract biopesticide reduced the intensity of leaf spot disease caused by Cercospora capsici Heald & F.
Wolf on cayenne pepper plants.
Disease intensity was low across all treatments, including the control.
No significant differences in yield were observed among the treatments.
REFERENCES