Fungicides

Fungicides
• Fungicides – definition
• The word „fungicide‟ originated from two Latin words, viz.,
fungus‟ and „caedo‟.
• The word „caedo‟ means „to kill.‟ Thus the fungicide is any
agency/chemical which has the ability to kill the fungus.
• According to this meaning, physical agents like ultra violet
light and heat should also be considered as fungicides.
• However, in common usage, the meaning is restricted to
• chemicals only. Hence, fungicide is a chemical which is
capable of killing fungi.
 Related terminology
• Fungistat is a chemical which inhibits the
fungal growth temporarily.
• The phenomenon of temporary inhibition is
known as fungistasis.
• A chemical which do not affect the growth of
vegetative hyphae but inhibits spore
production is known as antisporulant.
 Characters of an ideal fungicide
• It should have low phytotoxicity
• It should have long shelf life
• Stability during dilution
• It should be less toxic to human being, cattle, earth
worms , microorganisms etc.
• It should be a broad spectrum in its action
• Fungicide preparation should be ready for use
• It should have compatibility with other agrochemicals
• It must be cheaper one
• It should be available in different formulations
• It should be easily transportable
 Classification of Fungicides

• Fungicides can be broadly grouped based on

their (i) mode of action (ii) general use and
• (iii) chemical composition
 Based on mode of action
Protectant-Fungicide which protects a plant from a pathogen if it
is applied prior to infection.
• They are prophylactic in their behaviour. eg., Sulphur, zineb.
Therapeutant : Fungicide which eradicates a fungus after it
has caused infection by curing the plant is called
therapeutant. Usually chemotherapeutants are systemic and
eradicates deep seated infection. eg. Carboxin, oxycarboxin,
aureofungin
Eradicant : A chemical substance that destroys a pathogen
after its establishment in the host plant is known as eradicant.
It eradicates the dormant or active pathogen from the host. It
also acts as protectant. eg. Organomercurials, lime sulphur,
dodine.
 Based on general uses
• The fungicides can also be classified based on the nature
of their use in managing the diseases.
• Seed protectants : e.g., Organomercurials, captan, thiram,
carbendazim, carboxin
• Soil fungicides - Pre-plant e.g., Bordeaux mixture, copper
oxychloride, vapam, chloropicrin, formaldehyde.
• Soil fungicides - when plants are in field e.g., Bordeaux mixture,
copper oxychloride, thiram, captan.
• Foliage and blossom protectants e.g., Bordeaux mixture, copper
oxychloride, ferbam, zineb, mancozeb, captan, carbendazim,
chlorothalonil, Fruit protectants e.g., maneb mancozeb, captan,
carbendazim, thiabendazole.
• Tree wound dresser e.g., Bordeaux paste, Chaubattia paste
• Antibiotics -e.g.,Streptomycin, streptocycline, griseofulvin
 Classification based on chemical
composition
1. Copper fungicides
2. Sulphur fungicides
3. Mercurial fungicides
4. Quinones
5. Heterocyclic nitrogenous compounds
6. Aromatic compounds
7. Non – aromatic compounds
8. Organotin compounds
9. Organophosphorus compounds
10. Nickel compounds
11. Miscellaneous fungicides
12. Systemic fungicides
13. Antibiotic
 Copper fungicides

• The copper compounds which were developed in

nineteenth century had wide usage all over the world
until organic fungicides came into use.
• Bordeaux mixture is the oldest copper fungicide.
• The discovery of Bordeaux mixture in 1882 by Millardet,
Professor of Botany, University of Bordeaux France laid
the foundation stone for the development of fungicides
• The fact that Bordeaux mixture as effective fungicide was
announced by Millardet in 1885 which rapidly gained
admirations from grapevine growers of France.
•
 Bordeaux mixture
• Bordeaux mixture 1% is generally used for control of foliar
diseases and some soil –borne diseases.
It is used mainly for the control of downy mildew of
grapevine, late blight of potato, koleroga of arecanut, foliar
diseases like anthracnose, leaf spots, leaf blights, etc.,
Sometimes
• it is also effective against some bacterial diseases (citrus
canker).
• It is used as soil drenching chemical for the control of nursery
diseases like damping off caused by Pythium sp, Phytophthora
sp., Rhizoctonia sp, and Phytophthora wilt of betelvine and
basal stem rot of coconut.
• Especially for the control of coffee rust, Bordeaux mixture is
used at 0.5% only.
•
• Method of preparation
• Bordeaux mixture 1% is prepared with the
following materials in the ratio of 1:1:100.
• Copper sulphate (CuSO4) - 1 kg
• Quick Lime [Ca (OH)2] - 1 kg
• Water - 100 lit
• One kg of copper sulphate is powdered and
dissolved in 50 litres of water.
• Similarly, 1 kg of lime is powdered and
dissolved in another 50 litres of water.
• Then copper sulphate solution is slowly added
to lime solution with constant stirring or
alternatively, both the solutions may be
poured simultaneously to a third contained
and mixed well.
 Chemistry of Bordeaux mixture
•
• The chemistry or Bordeaux mixture is complex:
• CuSO4+Ca (OH) 2 ----------> Cu (OH) 2 + CaSO4

• The ultimate mixture contains gelatinous

precipitate of copper hydroxide and calcium
sulphate.
• Cupric hydroxide is the active principle and is
toxic to the fungi.
 Bordeaux paste
• Bordeaux Paste consists of same constituents as
that of Bordeaux mixture, but it is in the form of a
paste as the quantity of water used is too little.
• It is nothing but 10 percent Bordeaux mixture
and is prepared by mixing 1 kg of copper sulphate
and 1 kg of lime in 10 litres of water.
• The method of mixing solution is similar to that
of Bordeaux mixture.
• It is a wound dresser and used to protect the
wounded portions, cut ends of trees etc., against
the infection by fungal pathogens.
 Burgundy mixture
• It was developed Burgundy (France) in 1887 by
Mason.
• It is prepared in the same way as Bordeaux mixture,
except the lime is substituted by sodium carbonate.
So it is called as „Soda Bordeaux‟.
• The usual formula contains 1 kg of copper sulphate
and 1 kg of sodium carbonate in 100 litres of water.
It is a good substitute for Bordeaux mixture and
used in
• copper-sensitive crops.
 Cheshunt compound

• It is compound usually prepared by mixing 2 parts of

copper sulphate and 11 parts of ammonium carbonate.
This formula was suggested by Bewley in the year 1921.
The two salts are well powdered, mixed thoroughly and
stored in a air tight container for 24 hours before being
used.
• The ripened mixture is used by dissolving it in water at
the rate of 3 g/litre.
• The mixture is dissolved initially in a little hot water and
volume is made up with cold water and used for
spraying.
 Copper carbonate preparation
• Chaubattia paste is another wound dressing fungicide
developed by Singh in 1942 at Government Fruit Research
Station, Chaubattia in the Almora district of Uttrakhand.
• It is usually prepared in glass containers or chinaware pot,
by mixing 800g of copper carbonate and 800g of red lead in
one liter of raw linseed oil or lanolin.
• This paste is usually applied to pruned parts of apple, pear
and peaches to control several diseases.
• The paste has the added advantage that it is not easily
washed away by rain water.
 It is applied to pruned parts for the control of the above
diseases. A readymade paste is now sold commercially.
 Copper oxychloride
 The phytotoxic nature and tediousness in the preparation of Bordeaux
mixture necessitated the discovery of a formulation which is less toxic
and as effective as the Bordeaux mixture.
 Copper oxychlorides: the “fixed coppers” are the outcome now they are
widely used against many fungal diseases.
 The commercial formulations are Blimix, Blitox 50, Coppersan, Blue
copper-50, Cupromar, Fytolan, and Fytomix.
 In the formulation of copper oxychlorides, the copper is fixed and thus it
is less soluble in nature.
 This quality makes the fixed copper less phytotoxic.
 It is available in the market as dust formulations and wettable powders.
 It contains 50% metallic copper.
• It is used for management of Anthracnose , Tikka leaf spot of groundnut,
Sigatoka leaf spot of banana and bacterial diseases citrus canker, black
arm of cotton
• Dosage : Foliar spray @ .25% to 0.5%
 Mechanism of action of Copper
fungicides
• Mechanism of action: Copper kills spores of
fungi by combining with the sulphydryl group of
certain amino acids and disrupts proteins and
enzymes.
• Fungistatic action of copper arises through non-
specific destruction of proteins and enzymes
which is due to non-selective and non-specific
affinity of the cupric ion for certain isogenic
groups such as imidazole, carboxy, phosphate or
sulphydryl.
 Sulphur fungicides
 Sulphur is probably the oldest chemical used in plant disease
management for the control of powdery mildews.
 Elemental sulphur has been in use from ancient times.
 Mention about its use has been made in the Bible.
 In 1821 Robertson experimentally proved for the first time about
the effective control of peach mildew with the use of sulphur.
 sulphur fungicides canbe classified as inorganic sulphur and
organic sulphur.
 Inorganic sulphur fungicides include lime sulphur and elemental
sulphur fungicides.
 Organic sulphur fungicides, also called as carbamate fungicides,
are the derivatives of dithiocarbamic acid.
 Sulphur fungicides emit sufficient vapour to prevent the growth of
the fungal spores at a distance from the area of deposition.
 INORGANIC SULPHUR FUNGICIDES
Common Trade name Dosage Disease
name managed
Lime sulphur It is prepared by 10-15 liters in Powdery mildew
mixing 20 Kg of 500 of apple, Apple
rock lime and 15 liters of water scab, bean rust
Kg of sulphur in
500 liters of water
Sulphur dust Kolo dust, Mico- For ST- 4-5g/Kg Common scab
999 seed, For of potato, Grain
dusting 10-30 smut of jowar,
Kg/ha, For soil Powdery mildew
application-100 of tobacco, chilli,
Kg /ha rose, mango,
grapes,
Wettable Sulfex, Thiovit, 0.2-0.4 % for Powdery
sulphur Cosan foliar mildews of
spray various crops
 ORGANIC SULPHUR COMPOUNDS

Organic sulphur compounds are derived from

dithiocarbamic acid and are widely used as spray
fungicides.
In 1931, Tisdale and Williams were the first to
describe the fungicidal nature of Dithiocarbamates.
Dithiocarbamates can be categorized into two
groups,
Dialkyl dithiocarbamates- ziram, ferbam and thiram

Monoalkyl dithiocarbamates -nabam, zineb, vapam

and maneb
 Dialkyl Dithiocarbamates
(ORGANIC SULPHUR COMPOUNDS)

Common Trade name Dosage Disease

name managed
Thiram Arasan, Hexathir, 0.2-0.3% as dry Soil borne diseases
Tersan, Thiram, seed caused by Pythium,
Thiride treatment, 0.15 to Rhizoctonia solani,
0.2% as foliar spray, Fusarium, etc.
15-25Kg/ha as soil
application
Ziram Ziride, Hexazir, 0.15 to 0.25% Anthracnose of
Milbam, Zerlate for foliar spray Pulses, tomato,
beans, tobacco,
bean rust
Ferbam Coromet, Ferbam, 0.15 to 0.25% Fungal pathogens
Fermate, for foliar spray of fruits and
Fermocide, vegetables, leaf curl
Hexaferb, Karbam of peaches, apple
Black scab, Downy
mildew of tobacco
 Monoalkyl Dithiocarbamates
(ORGANIC SULPHUR COMPOUNDS)

Common Trade Dosage Disease managed

name name
Zineb Dithane Z- 0.1 to 0.3% for Chilli die-back and fruit rot, Apple
78, foliar application scab, Maize leaf blight, early
Lanocol and blight of potato
Parzate
Maneb Dithane M22, 0.2% to 0.3% as Early and late blight of
Manzate and foliar application potato and tomato, rust
MEB diseases of field and fruit
crops
Mancozeb Dithane M- 0.2% to 0.3% as Early and late blight of
(78% 45, foliar application potato and tomato, rust
Maneb + 2% Indofil M -45 diseases of field and fruit
zinc Crops
ion):
Vapam VPM, 1.5 to 2.5 liters Fungicide with fungicidal,
vapam, per 10 m2 area nematicidal and insecticidal
vitafume, properties. Soil fungal pathogens
like Fusarium, Puthium,
Sclerotium and Rhizoctonia.
HETROCYCLIC NITROGENOUS COMPOUNDS

The group of heterogeneous fungicides includes

some of the best fungicides like captan, folpet,
captafol, vinclozoline and Iprodione.

Captan, folpet and captafol belong to

dicarboximides and are known as pthalamide
fungicides.

The new members of dicarboximide group are

Iprodione, vinclozolin, etc.
 HETROCYCLIC NITROGENOUS COMPOUNDS

Common Trade Dosage Disease managed

name name
Captan Captan 50W, 0.2 to 0.3% for dry die-back and fruit rot, Damping
(Kittleson’s Captan 75 seed treatment, off of beans, chilli and tomato,
Killer) W, Esso 0.2 seed rots and seedling blights
fungicide, to 0.3% for foliar of maize
spray,
Folpet Phaltan 0.1 to 0.2% for Apple scab, tobacco, brown
spraying spot, rose black spot

Captafol Difosan, 0.15 to 0.2% for Sorghum anthracnose, cotton

Difolaton, spraying, 0.25% seedling diseases, seed rot and
Sanspor, for seedling diseases of rice,
Foltaf seed treatment downy mildew of crucifers,
apple scab
Iprodione Rovral, 0.1 to 0.2% for Diseases caused by Botrytis,
Glycophene foliar application Alternaria, Sclerotinia,
Helminthosporium, Rhizoctonia
 MISCELLANEOUS FUNGICIDES
Common Trade Dosage Disease managed
name name
Chlorothalonil Bravo, 0.2 to 0.3% for A broad spectrum contact
Daconil, foliar application fungicide often used in
Kavach, greenhouses for control of
Safegaurd Botrytis on ornamentals and
for several molds and blights
of tomato and potato
Dinocap Karathane, 0.1 to 0.2% for It is a good acaricide and
Arathane spraying contact fungicide and it
controls
powdery mildews of fruits and
Ornamentals effectively.
Dodine Cyprex, 0.075 to 0.1% for Apple scab, black
Melprex, spraying spot of roses and
cherry leaf spot
 SYSTEMIC FUNGICIDES

The systemic fungicides were first introduced by Von

Schelming and Marshall Kulka in 1966.

The discovery of Oxathiin fungicides was soon followed by

confirmation of systemic activity of pyrimidines and
benzimidazoles.

A systemic fungicide is capable of managing a pathogen

remote from the point of application.

On the basis of chemical nature these fungicides are

classified as follows
On the basis of chemical nature and structural relationship
these fungicides are classified as detailed below

• Acetamides: e.g., cymoxanil

• Acylalanines: e.g., Metalaxyl, Furalaxyl, Benalaxyl
• Aliphatics: e.g., prothiocarb, Propamocarb
• Benzimidazoles: e.g., Benomyl, Carbendazim, Thiabendazole, Fuberidazole,
• .Oxathiins or Carboximides: e.g., Carboxin Oxycarboxin, Fenfuran,
• Dicarboximides: e.g., Procymidone
• Imidazoles: e.g., Imazalil, Fenafanil
• Morpholines: e.g., Dodemorph, Tridemorph
• Organophosphates: e.g., Triaminphos Iprobenphos, Pyrazohphos
• Alkyl phosphonates: e.g., Phosetyl - Al
• Piperazine: e.g., Triforine
• Pyrimidines and purines: e.g., Dimethirimol, Ethirimol,Triarimol,
• Thiophanates: e.g., Thiophanate, thiophanate – methyl
• Triazoles: e.g., R.H-24, Tricyclozole, Fluotrimazole, Triadimefon, Triadimenol, Bilox
• Phenol derivatives: e.g., Chloroneb
•
 ACYLALANINES
Common Trade name Dosage Disease managed
name
Metalaxyl Ridomil 25 2-3 g/Kg It is highly effective
% WP, Apron seed for seed against Pythium,
35 treatment Phytophthora and
SD, Subdue, 0.1to 0.2% many downy mildew
for foliar fungi
spray
Metalaxyl Ridomil MZ- 2-3 g/Kg It is highly effective
+Mancozeb 72WP seed for seed against Pythium,
treatment Phytophthora and
0.2to 0.25% many downy mildew
for foliar fungi
spray
 AROMATIC HYDROCARBONS
Common Trade name Dosage Disease managed
name
Chlorone Demosan 0.2% for Seedling
b seed diseases of
treatment cotton , peanut,
peas,and
cucurbits caused
by species of
Pythium,
Phytophthora,
Rhizoctonia and
Sclerotium
 BENZIMIDAZOLES

Common Trade name Dosage Disease managed

name
Carbendazim Bavistin 50WP, 0.1% for foliar spray, Effectivelycontrols
MBC, Derosol 0.1% for soil drench, anthracnose, powdery mildews
60WP, 0.2% for ST, 500- and rusts caused by various
Agrozim, 1000ppm for fungi. It is also used as a soil
Zoom post-harvest dip drench against wilt diseases
of fruits and for post harvest treatment
of fruits
Benomyl Benlate 50WP 0.2% for ST, Effective against powdery
Benomyl has no effect
against Oomycetes and 0.1%for foliar spray, mildews of cucurbits, cereals
some dark coloured
fungi such as
50-200ppm forsoil and legumes.
Alternaria and drenching,100-500 It is highlyeffective against
Helminthosporium
ppm for post harvest diseases caused by the
fruit dip species of Rhizoctonia,
Theilaviopsis and
Cephalosporium.
Thiabendazo Mertect 60WP, 0.2 to 0.3% for Blue and green molds of citrus,
le And Tecto spraying, 1000 loose smut of wheat, Tikka leaf
 OXATHINS or CARBOXIMIDES
Common Trade Dosage Disease managed
name name
Carboxin Vitavax 75WP 0.15 to 0.2% for Highly effective against smut
seed treatment, diseases.
0.5% for Commonly used for the
spraying control of loose smut of
wheat, onion smut,
grain smut of sorghum
Carboxin + Vitavax power 0.15 to 0.2% for Highly effective against smut
Thiram seed treatment, diseases.
0.5% for Commonly used for the
spraying control of loose smut of
wheat, onion smut,
grain smut of sorghum and
wilts.
Oxycarboxin Plantavax 75 0.1 to 0.2% for Highly effective against rust
WP, foliar spray, 0.2 diseases.
Plantavax to 0.5% for ST Commonly used for the
20EC, control of rusts of wheat,
Plantavax 5% sorghum,
liquid safflower, legumes, etc.