## 1 Introduction  
Crude extracts of medicinal plants have been demonstrated as rich sources of bioactive molecules with curative capability. This curative potential is attributed to the complex mixtures of these bioactive compounds of different chemical classes, with antioxidant and antimicrobial activity [1]. Allopathic medicine is emerging as a new field of research globally as potential source of novel active/functional compounds for new drugs [2]. In the agricultural sector, disease-causing fungal pathogens result in serious deterioration of fresh horticultural commodities after leaving the farm gate and during storage. Synthetic fungicides and bio-based fungicides have been successful in mitigating the impact of these pathogens [1, 3]. According to the Fungicides Global Market Report [4], it is estimated that the global fungicides market will grow from 2021 value of approximately $19.32 billion to $20.64 billion in 2022, and to $26.09 billion in 2026. This is a huge cost for the management of agricultural produce. Therefore, bioprospecting for new natural bioactive compounds with anti-fungal properties as alternatives to existing fungicides is crucial for the development biocontrol treatment of fungal pathogens. _Helichrysum_ (Asteraceae), locally known in South African traditional/folk medicine by a collective name as _'Inpherlo'_, is one of the mostly used species to combat ailments, such as the treatment of wounds, burns, pimples, eczema, as well as coughs and colds [5; 6]. Traditional uses of the species also include the treatment of abdominal pains, catarh, headache, fever, menstrual disorders, and urinary tract infections, suggesting that these plants parade anti-microbial and -inflammatory effects [7]. About 245-250 species, from the genus consisting of roughly 500-600 species, are indigenous to South Africa [1; 7]. Several studies have reported on different pharmacological properties of the essential oils (EOs) extracted from _Helichrysum_ spp. [PERSON] et al. [8] explored the biological activities of EO extracted from _H. petilare_, _H. odoratissimum_, and _H. cynosum_ and found out that the EOs possessed low antibacterial, anti-tyrosine activity but promising antioxidant capacity. The study conducted by [PERSON] et al. [8] demonstrated a good antimicrobial activity for EOs of _H. pandurifolium_ and _H. trilineatum_ whereas, EOs from _H. edwardsii_ and _H. pandurifolium_ did not show any antimicrobial activity. A recent study by [PERSON] et al. [9] investigated the chemical profiling and antimicrobial activity of aqueous methanol of _H. odoratissimum_ and _H. petilare_. The authors reported significantly higher antimicrobial effects of the methanolic extracts obtained from _H. odoruissimum_ towards a larger range of bacteria in comparison to _H. petilare_ extracts with minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of 0.13 mg mL\({}^{-1}\) < MIC \(\leq\) 1000 \(\mu\)g mL\({}^{-1}\) and 4.0 mg mL\({}^{-1}\) < MIC \(\leq\) 1000 \(\mu\)g mL\({}^{-1}\), respectively. The highest antimicrobial effect of the methanolic extracts was against _Escherichia coli_. Furthermore, based on ultra-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS) analysis, the authors also observed high chemical variation within the two species. Moreover, [PERSON] et al. [10] studied the activities of _H. odoratissimum_ plants cultivated via aquaponics and hydroponics and found out that _H. odoratissimum_ plants cultivated via aquaponics exhibited the bet antifungal activity whereas those cultivated via hydroponics yielded the highest antioxidant activity. A gas chromatography-mass spectrometry analysis performed by [PERSON] et al. [11] on EO of _H. italicum_ detected a total number of 70 EO constituents. This was in support of a previous study by [PERSON] et al. [12] who investigated the chemical constituents of _H.