Ijato James
Cocoyam is a root crop that is produced in regions of the tropical or sub-tropical developing countries. In certain countries like Ghana, cocoyam production is surplus but post harvest losses are high due to mechanical damage of corms during harvest which predisposes the corms to microbial attack in storage. Antibacterial activities of the test plant were determined using agar diffusion method. Five bacteria strains were isolated from rotten cocoyam corm viz: Bacillus cereus, Staphylococcus aureus, Aeromonas hydrophila, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Proteus mirabilis. Cold aqueous extract of 20% of the test plant mostly inhibited Staphylococcus aureus (0.66) followed by Bacillus cereus (0.65). The list inhibited organisms being Pseudomonas aeruginosa (0.36) and Proteus mirabilis (0.38). Hot water extract (20%) of the test plant mostly inhibited Bacillus cereus (0.52) followed by Staphylococcus aureus (0.49). The results showed that higher concentrations of V. Amygdalina extracts inhibited the growth of organisms more than lower concentrations. The use of plant based biocide against bacterial isolates proves efficacious as they are effective, affordable and are less harmful to man the environment.
