ASSESSMENT OF PHYTOCHEMICALS, TOTAL PHENOL, FLAVONOID CONTENT AND IN VITRO ANTIOXIDANT PROPERTY OF LARGE CARDAMOM EXTRACTS

Amomum subulatum, commonly known as large or black cardamom, is a commonly used spice in Indian kitchens and is traditionally used to treat various ailments. To add more knowledge about the medicinal values of the fruit, this study was conducted to evaluate the in vitro antioxidant activities of aqueous, methanol, ethanol, hydro alcohol, ethyl acetate, acetone and chloroform extracts of the fruit. Preliminary assessment was done to detect the presence of phytoconstituents using identification tests. The antioxidant activity was measured by employing methods such as diphenylpicrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging assay, total antioxidant activity equivalent to ascorbic acid, reducing power assay and superoxide anion scavenging assay. The antioxidant activities were compared with their respective phenol and flavonoid contents. Preliminary assessment revealed that large cardamom fruit is a good source of all the bioactive constituents as well as phenol and flavonoid essential for medicinal values. The extract obtained by polar solvents showed the highest antioxidant efficacy in relation to its phenol content. Also, all the solvent-soluble fractions showed a concentration-dependent antioxidant effect. Results from our study prove that large cardamom can alleviate oxidative stress, suggesting the potential of large cardamom as a functional food

Leaf Blight Caused by Colletotrichum Fructicola of Large Cardamom (Amomum Subulatam Roxb.) an Important Cash Crop Grown in Sikkim, India

The full text of this preprint has been withdrawn by the authors due to author disagreement with the posting of the preprint. Therefore, the authors do not wish this work to be cited as a reference. Questions should be directed to the corresponding author.

Leaf Blight Caused by Colletotrichum Fructicola of Large Cardamom (Amomum Subulatam Roxb.) an Important Cash Crop Grown in Sikkim, India

Large cardamom (Amommum subulatum Roxb.) a high valued spice crop grown in Sikkim Himalaya is now facing a devastating leaf blight disease that has brought down the yield drastically. Present study was focused on identification of this major fungal pathogen based on the morphological and molecular characterization. During this study infected leaves of large cardamom with blighted appearance were collected from all the four districts of Sikkim. The pathogen was isolated using Potato Dextrose Agar (PDA) medium, incubated at 25°C. The mycelium was septate, hyaline, and 2-4 µm wide. The conidiospores were cylindrical with both ends rounded, sometimes oblong. Length and breadth were 11-12 µm and 3-4 µm, respectively. On the basis colony morphology, growth and microscopic observations, out of the total 48 samples studied Colletotrichum sp. was identified from 14 samples. Based on phylogenetic analysis of the ITS4, ITS5 and ApMAT genes and phenotypic characters (colony morphology, microscopic features) the isolate (No. LC05) isolated from the sample collected from the village Assam Linzey, East Sikkim showed 100% homology with Colletotrichum fructicola from NCBI database. The pathogenicity of C. fructicola was also confirmed during the study. The fungal culture has been deposited at the NFCCI-ARI, Pune with an accession number NFCCI 4542 and the sequences have been deposited in NCBI GenBank with accession number (ITS) MN710587, (ApMAT) MW348934 respectively. To the best of our knowledge this is the first report of C. fructicola causing blight disease of large cardamom. Also the finding is very important to improve the disease control strategies of this high valued cash crop.

Isolation, Characterization, and Evaluation of Native Rhizobacterial Consortia Developed From the Rhizosphere of Rice Grown in Organic State Sikkim, India, and Their Effect on Plant Growth

Eight rhizospheric bacteria were isolated from the organic paddy fields of Sikkim, India, and identified as Pseudomonas kribbensis KSB, Burkholderia cenocepacia SRD, Kosakonia oryzendophytica YMA7, Pseudomonas rhodesiae SRB, Bacillus sp. ARA, Paenibacillus polymyxa COW3, Bacillus aryabhattai PSB2, and Bacillus megaterium PSB1. They showed plant growth-promoting attributes in rice and have bio-control potential against phytopathogen Colletotrichum gloeosporioides of large cardamom (Amomum subulatum). Burkholderia cenocepacia SRD showed production of indole acetic acid and ammonia and solubilization of phosphate and potassium and also possessed nitrogen fixation potential. It showed antagonistic activity against two other plant pathogens of large cardamom, viz., Curvularia eragrostidis and Pestalotiopsis sp., under in vitro conditions. The liquid bacterial consortium was prepared using the bacterial strains SRB, PSB1, and COW3 (Consortia-1); PSB2, SRD, and COW3 (Consortia-2); and COW3, KSB, and YMA7 (Consortia-3) to increase the growth and yield of rice plants under organic farming conditions. Greenhouse and field studies showed that the Consortia-3 had the highest plant growth-promoting activity. Consortia-3 demonstrated better agronomic performance in terms of root length (9.5 cm),number of leaflets per plant (5.3), grains per panicle (110.6), test grain weight (27.4 g), dry root weight per plant (0.73 g), and total dry biomass per plant (8.26 g).

REVIEW ON STATUS OF LARGE CARDAMOM (AMOMUM SUBULATUM ROXB.) PRODUCTION AND MARKETING IN NEPAL

Large cardamom is the major spices crop and an export potential high value crop. Nepal is the largest producer of large cardamom. The review study focuses on the status of the production, marketing, exports and constraints in the large cardamom cultivation in Nepal. The production of the large cardamom is found to be increasing but the productivity was in decreasing trend. The varieties are under the process of registration. The most of the marketing channel is the exporting channel and India is the primary market of export. Some of the value addition processes are missing during processing of the crop. Price volatility and lack of proper technical knowledge are the major constraints observed in the production and trade. Other problems like improper planting material, traditional curing process, susceptible to viral diseases, high custom tariffs and trade taxes in some countries are also the observed problems. Producing of the product with quality standard through technical training and workshop from public and private sector can help in uplifting the large cardamom status of the country.

Prevalence of insect pests in large cardamom (Amomum subulatum Roxb.) and evaluation of bio-rationals for the management of major pests under organic agro-ecosystem of Sikkim

Large cardamom (Amomum subulatum Roxb.) is one of the important cash crops of Sikkim and Darjeeling areas of West Bengal. In this study, a fixed plot survey on insect pests of large cardamom was conducted and found that stem borer (Glyphipterix spp., Lepidoptera: Glyphiperidae), shoot fly (Merochlotops dimorphus Cherian, Diptera: Chlororpidae), leaf eating caterpillar (Artona chorista Jordon, Lepidoptera: Zygaenidae) and tea mosquito bug (Helopeltis theivora Waterhouse, Hemiptera: Miridae) are the major pests of the crop. Eco-friendly organic treatments like neem-based oil, petroleum-derived horticultural oil, spinosad and different formulations of entomopathogens were tested against these major insects. Among all, application of spinosad 45 SC @ 0.3 ml L-1 was found effective followed by neem-based oil (Azadirachtin 0.15% EC) 1500 ppm @ 3 ml L-1 at three different time intervals (first application in February-March, second application in June-July and third application in October-November) against all insects. Moreover, entomopathogenic bio-control agents (Bacillus thuringiensis @ 2 ml L-1, Metarhizium anisopliae@ 5 ml L-1 and Beauveria bassiana @ 5 ml L-1) were on par with neem-based oil for the management of stem borer. Considering the economic importance of the crop and absence of valid technology for management of insect pests in large cardamom through organic options, application of either of them could be helpful in organic management of insect pests in Sikkim.

PRODUCTION ECONOMICS AND MARKETING OF LARGE CARDAMOM (AMOMUM SUBULATUM ROXB.) IN CHAINPUR, SANKHUWASABHA, NEPAL

A study on production economics and marketing of Large cardamom in Chainpur, Sankhuwasabha was conducted from December 2018 to June 2019. Altogether 60 farmers were selected randomly from the PMAMP Cardamom command area of Chainpur municipality of Sankhuwasabha. Besides, 12 traders were also selected. A focus group discussion, key informants interview (KII) and direct observations were carried out to generate primary data along with Household survey with the use of semi-structured pre-tested interview schedule for the study. The secondary data were collected from literature like reports and publications of different institutions. The yield of cardamom in the study area has fallen now by more than 50% than the maximum realized yield to 220 kg ha-1. Cardamom was found to be labor intensive in the study area. Coupled with low market price and low productivity, many farmers felt a loss. However, economic analysis of the area indicated the cardamom farming is profitable. The sensitivity analysis with 20% decrease in price also found the farming to be profitable and viable. The farming is labor intensive and the average annual production cost per hectare was NRs 50,124 considering hired labors only and NRs 74,358 considering both hired and family labor cost per hectare. Among many causes of decline in productivity, many farmers ranked disease as the most devastating. The monopoly of Indian marketers at Birtamod was considered as the topmost reason for price fluctuation. The study evolved the immediate need of crop management by disease control to increase production and marketing intervention for consistent price of the Large cardamom.