Numerous fungal plant pathogens can infect fresh fruits and vegetables during transit and storage conditions. The resulting infections were mainly controlled by synthetic fungicides, but their application has many drawbacks associated with the threatened environment and human health. Therefore, the use of natural plants with antimicrobial potential could be a promising alternative to overcome the side effects of fungicides. In this regard, this study aimed at evaluating the antifungal activity potential of saffron petal extract (SPE) against three mains important fungal pathogens: Rhizopus stolonifer, Penicillium digitatum and Botritys cinerea, which cause rot decay on the tomato, orange and apple fruits, respectively. In addition, the organic composition of SPE was characterized by attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FT-IR) spectroscopy and its biochemical, and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analyses were carried out. The obtained results highlighted an increased inhibition rate of the mycelial growth and spore germination of the three pathogenic fungi with increasing SPE concentrations. The mycelial growth and spore germination were completely inhibited at 10% of the SPE for Rhizopus stolonifer and Penicillium digitatum and at 5% for B. cinerea. Interestingly, the in vivo test showed the complete suppression of Rhizopus rot by the SPE at 10%, and a significant reduction of the severity of grey mold disease (37.19%) and green mold, when applied at 5 and 10%, respectively. The FT-IR spectra showed characteristic peaks and a variety of functional groups, which confirmed that SPE contains phenolic and flavonoid components. In addition, The average value of the total phenolic content, flavonoid content and half-maximal inhibitory concentration (IC₅₀) were 3.09 ± 0.012 mg GAE/g DW, 0.92 ± 0.004 mg QE/g DW and 235.15 ± 2.12 µg/mL, respectively. A volatile analysis showed that the most dominant component in the saffron petal is 2(5H)-Furanone (92.10%). Taken together, it was concluded that SPE could be used as an alternative to antioxidant and antifungal compounds for the control of postharvest diseases in fruits.

Canker symptoms were observed on almond trees in the Fez-Meknes region, Morocco. Isolations were conducted from the infected branch and trunk showing internal and external brown lesions. Four representative fungal isolates were screened, and their identities were confirmed by cultural traits and sequence analysis of DNA using two genes, the ITS region (internal transcribed spacer) and calmodulin (cmdA). The identified fungi were Curvularia hawaiiensis, Fusarium ambrosium, Lasiodiplodia theobromae, and Chondrestereum purpureum. The pathogenicity test on almond twigs revealed that these species were pathogenic to their host with different degrees of virulence, with Lasiodiplodia theobromae as the most virulent causing the longest necrotic lesion (285.17 mm) and the death of twigs. Physiological traits analysis of the above-mentioned fungi showed that the optimum mycelium growth response at different temperatures varies from 10 to 35 °C, while the pH ranges between 3.0 and 8.0. This study confirms the presence of canker pathogens on almond trees, which will contribute valuable information to improve the understanding of the contemporary status of almond trees, thus helping the improvement of the management of almond orchards. To our knowledge, all these fungi represent new records in Morocco and some of them are confirmed on the almond trees for the first time in the world.

Apple scab, caused by Venturia inaequalis, remains a major challenge for apple production in Morocco, where disease management heavily depends on fungicide applications. However, increasing reports of resistance have raised concerns about the long-term efficacy of commonly used products and the economic sustainability of apple orchards. In this study, we evaluated the sensitivity of five V. inaequalis isolates from the Fes-Meknes region, a key apple-producing area in Morocco, to three fungicides: difenoconazole, trifloxystrobin, and thiophanate-methyl. The identity of the isolates was confirmed based on both morphological characteristics and by molecular analysis of the ITS region. In vitro and in vivo assays revealed significant differences in isolate responses. Difenoconazole consistently showed the highest efficacy, with EC₅₀ values ranging from 0.05 to 1.46 µg/mL, and preventive applications reducing disease severity by up to 85.8% at 10 µg/mL. In contrast, trifloxystrobin and thiophanate-methyl exhibited much higher EC₅₀ values (2.94–29.62 µg/mL and 14.84–1237.20 µg/mL, respectively), indicating widespread resistance, particularly to thiophanate-methyl, whose curative and preventive efficacy rarely exceeded 44%. Preventive treatments were significantly more effective than curative applications for all fungicides tested. These findings highlight the urgent need to revise apple scab management strategies in Morocco, including the rotation of fungicides with different modes of action and the integration of non-chemical approaches. Broader sensitivity monitoring and the use of molecular diagnostics are recommended to better inform sustainable disease control programs.

The cactus pear (Opuntia spp.) is a crop of major economic and ecological importance in arid and semi-arid regions. However, with its domestication and intensification, symptoms of fungal diseases have begun to emerge in different cultivation areas. This study was conducted to identify the pathogenic fungi associated with symptoms observed on cladodes in different regions of Morocco and to evaluate the effectiveness of bacterial and fungal antagonists. The study enabled the isolation and identification of several fungal agents from symptomatic cladodes, namely Alternaria alternata, Alternaria tenuissima, Colletotrichum gloeosporioides, and Aspergillus tubingensis. Among these pathogens, A. alternata proved to be the most aggressive and was therefore selected for in vitro and in vivo antagonism assays. Twelve bacterial isolates belonging to the genera Bacillus and Pseudomonas, as well as one isolate of Trichoderma harzianum, were evaluated for their antifungal activity. All antagonists showed significant inhibitory effects against A. alternata in vitro preliminary assay. However, the bacterial isolates B. siamensis, B. halotolerans, and P. peli, as well as T. harzianum, exhibited the highest efficacy. This efficacy was confirmed through direct confrontation tests in vivo on one-year-old cladodes for the three bacterial isolates. In contrast, T. harzianum showed significant pathogenic potential on cladodes of O. ficus-indica and O. megacantha. Investigation of the mechanisms of action of the three most effective bacterial isolates revealed their ability to produce antifungal volatile organic compounds. Enzymatic analyses showed differential production of amylase, chitinase, cellulase and protease among the three isolates, while genes associated with the biosynthesis of antifungal lipopeptides were detected only in P. peli.