Role of botanicals in

insect- pest
management
Botanicals in insect –pest management
• Botanicals are the pesticides derived from the plant materials.
• They have ability to effective control of insect- pest
because they possess repellant, knock down, anti-feedant,
broad spectrum properties
 Properties of botanicals
• Fast breakdown
• Fast action
• Selectivity
• Toxicity
• Phytotoxicity
• Cost and availability
History of Botanicals in Pest management
• 17th century: Nicotine against plum beetles.
• 1809: Nicotine discovered in France to kill aphids.
• 1848: Derris (Rotenone) reported to be used in insect control in
Asia.
• 1858: Pyrethrum first used for insect control in the USA.
• 1919: first record of scientific study on protection of food grain
by use of neem by Fletcher and Ghosh.

Use of botanicals is an age old practice where people used to

utilize the extracts from the plant parts to control the insects.
Important plant families having pesticidal
properties
Family Number of
plants
Meliaceae >500
Myrtaceae 72
Asteraceae 70
Euphorbiaceae 63

Leguminosae 60

Fabaceae 55
Properties of botanicals

• Fast breakdown
• Fast action
• Selectivity
• Toxicity
• Phytotoxicity
• Cost and availability
 Classifications of Botanical insecticides
Based on the physiological activity
1. Repellents
2. Feeding deterrents/antifeedant
3. Toxicants:
4. Natural grain protectants
5. Chemosterilants/ Reproduction Inhibitors
Pyrethrum: Cigarette beetle, house fly
6. Insect growth and development inhibitors
Eg: neem-Lepidopteran and Coleopteran larvae.
 Botanical pesticides used to control different
insect pests
Botanical pesticides Insect pests
• Nicotine Aphids, thrips, caterpillars
• Rotenone Bugs, aphids, potato beetles, spider mites, carpenter
• Ryania Codling moths, potato aphids, onion thrips, corn
earworms
• Sabadilla Grasshoppers, codling moths, armyworms,
aphids, cabbage loopers, squash bugs
• Pyrethrum Caterpillars, aphids, leafhoppers, spider mites,
bugs,cabbage worms, beetles
• Essential oils Caterpillars, cabbage worms, aphids, white flies
• Neem products Armyworms, cutworms, stem borers, bollworms,
leaf miners, caterpillars, aphids, whiteflies,
leafhoppers,psyllids, scales, mites and thrips
Some other plants use as a pesticides
Common Nature Local Scientific name Family Parts Targeted
name of plant name used pest
Neem Tree Neem Azardiracta indica Meliaceae Leaves, Rice weevil,
seed grain moth,
silverfish,
cloth moths
Turmeric Shrub Beshar Curcuma Zingiberaceae Weevil,
domestica flour bettle,
pulse
Chilli Herb Khursani Capsicum Solanaceae Fruit beetle.
Ant, aphid,
frutescense larvae of
butterfly,
beetle
Garlic Herb Lasun Allium sativum Liliaceae Cloves Aphids,
ticks,
nematode ,
Citrus sps Tree Aamilo Citrus sps Rutaceae Leaves epilachna
Gypsy
beetle
moth, pulse
beetle,
Advantages of use of botanicals..
• less hazardous
• Environment friendly
• Less cost
• biodegradable
• maintain balanced bio-diversity of insect-pest.
Disadvantages
• Need knowledge about plant
Thank you