Abstract: The chemical compositions of the essential oil obtained from the leaves and stalks of Chrysanthemum nankingense Hand. Mazz were analyzed by GC/MS method. Among the sixteen identified constituents comprising 90.62% of the total oil, the dominant components were citrals, sesquiterpenes and their derivatives, and linalool. The in vitro essay of the oil was studied against 6 fungi. The results showed that the oil exhibited remarkable inhibition to A. niger, R. oryzae, Mucor sp., P. citrinum, G. candidum and A. circinans with MICs or MBCs of 0.3%～0.6% (V/V) respectively, and that the inhibitory effect on mycelium growth of the test fungi by the oil (0.4%～0.6%,V/V) was held in accordance with PPA (0.5%,W/V) in 2-week culture period. It was well known that once infection has occurred, suppression of mycelium growth within foods became an important management objective to prevent the mildew of the foods. So, the oil from Chrysanthemum nankingense would give a potential of application as a fungicide.

Key words: Chrysanthemum nankingense Hand. Mazz, essential oil, chemical composition, anti-fungal activity