Published in Scientific Papers. Series B, Horticulture, Vol. LXVII, Issue 2
Written by Boyka MALCHEVA, Pavlina NASKOVA, Dragomir PLAMENOV, Dimitar NIKOLOV
Soil microbiological and agrochemical indicators were analyzed during biological cultivation of spearmint, in greenhouse conditions, as main indicators of good plant development, studied for antimicrobial activity against Escherichia coli, by testing different variants of plant extracts (decoction, tincture, medicinal wine, medicinal vinegar, medicinal oil). The results of the agrochemical analysis show that spearmint does not have a major impact on the dynamics of macronutrients in the soil. While the biogenicity and activity of enzymes cellulase and catalase increased in the soils with spearmint culture compared to the no-vegetation control. Positive antimicrobial activity against the pathogenic microorganism Escherichia coli was reported for all variants of extracts of spearmint, differing for individual parts of the plant and individual variants of extracts. Root and whole plant extracts showed higher antimicrobial activity compared to leaf and stem extracts. The strongest antimicrobial activity of the plant extracts was found in the medicated oil and medicated vinegar variants and the weakest in the 'decoction' variants. The choice of solvent and exposure time likely influence the diameter of the sterile zone.
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