Abstract

The development and adaptions of improved farming and postharvest protection techniques for sustainable agriculture have become indispensable to curtail pre and post losses. There is a huge demand for healthy nutritious fresh produce to meet the requirement of the global population. New initiatives to boost agriculture productivity by maximizing pre and post-harvest yields achieved through efficient pre and postharvest management of major plant diseases. As an alternative to chemical fungicides, the global attention towards the development of plant-based organic fungicides is gaining popularity as green fungicides, considering their merits and advantages on the sustainable basis. Plant disease management with plant essential oil is recognized as one of the ecofriendly approaches. A vast number of plant essential oils exhibited different levels of antimicrobial activities to various ranges of plant fungal and bacterial pathogens and had effectively reduced the severity of the major diseases in horticultural crops. This discussion will provide an overview of antifungal properties, the mechanisms of action, of essential oils and their specific volatile components identified against anthracnose (Colletotrichum spp.) in tropical fruits, highlighting the research gaps, use of reviewed knowledge and its future perspectives that could be used in future research to develop plant-based biochemical fungicides as an alternative to synthetic fungicides.