Screening of Allelopathic Activity of Momordica dioica and Mukia maderaspatana

Abstract

ABSTRACT
Allelopathy is a chemical process which a plant uses to keep other plants from growing too close or away from it. Allelopathy refers to the chemical inhibition of one species by another. The “inhibitory” chemical releases into the environment where it affects the development and growth of neighboring plants. In the present investigation to check the allelopathic activity, two plants of family Cucurbitaceae were selected, i.e., Momordica dioica Roxb. ex Willd. and Mukia maderaspatana (L.) M. Roemer and were assessed for the effects of their extracts on the growth of mature seeds of Phaseolus aconitifolius Jacq. variety “Abhaya” as a test plant. Phytoextract, leachates and decomposition bioassay methods were followed for detection of allelopathic activity. Leaf of M. dioica and root of M. maderaspatana show dominance as compared to other three plants in phytoextracts and leachate bioassays. In decomposition bioassay, M. maderaspatana shows the allelopathic activity on seedling growth and seed germination of P. aconitifolius as compared to M. dioica. The variation may result, in part, from the test plant with different sensitivity to allelochemicals. However, M. maderaspatana possessed high allelopathic potential and may be a good candidate for isolation and identification of allelochemicals. It would also be interesting to evaluate the implication on these evaluation results under field conditions.
Keywords: Allelopathy, Momordica dioica, Mukia maderaspatana, Bioassay, Phaseolus aconitifolius, inhibitory effect