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The potato tuber moth (PTM), Phthorimaea operculella Zeller (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae), is an important pest of potato and other solanaceous plants. It is cosmopolite and oligophage that exists in most countries where potatoes are grown. Because of chemical treatment adverse effects, there is a necessity to find safe alternatives to synthetic insecticides. So, medicinal plants are promising since they are safe, inexpensive and effective. In this direction, potato tubers were dipped in 1 ml of 5% methanolic extracts of fumitory, licorice, lavender and oregano. The percentage of first larval penetration to tubers and oviposition-preference of mentioned medicinal plants was investigated on PTM. Subsequently, fumigant toxicity of essential oils of basil, european pennyroyal, lavender, mint and savory were investigated on P. operculella. Treated potato tubers by methanolic extract of lavender elicited the lowest percentage (19.3) of first larval penetration. Studying of oviposition-preference demonstrated that the largest number of eggs were laid on control and fumitory with 28 and 10 eggs after three days, respectively. Probit analysis of essential oils showed that the most effective oil was savory which exhibited LC₅₀ value on adults of PTM equivalent to 0.048 µL/L air.  

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The essential oils of aerial parts of three medicinal plants Artemisia khorassanica Podl., Rosmarinus officinalis L. and Mentha longifolia L. were isolated by hydrodistillation and investigated for their toxicity and repellency against Tribolium confusum Jacquelin du Val. at 27 ± 1 ºC and 60 ± 5% RH in darkness. The mortality of the adults increased with concentration from 185 to 1111 μl/l air and with exposure time from 9 to 24 h. A concentration of 185 μl/l air and exposure time of 24 h was sufficient to obtain nearly 100% kill of the adults in all of the three essential oils tested. At the highest concentration (1111 μl/l air) R. officinalis oil caused 15% mortality for an exposure time of 6-h. whilst, the oil of A. khorassanica resulted in 1% mortality at the same exposure time. The oil of A. khorassanica at 1111 μl/l air caused 81% mortality for 12-h exposure time. No significant differences were observed between the lethal time (LT₅₀) values at essential oil concentrations of 741 and 1111 μl/l air. For 24-h exposure time, the LC₅₀ values of A. khorassanica, R. officinalis and M. longifolia essential oils were estimated to be 22.45, 22.14 and 39.96 μl/l air respectively. Based on LC₅₀ values, adults of T. confusum showed similar susceptibility to the A. khorassanica and R. officinalis oils, but M. longifolia oil proved to be less toxic. In contrast to their low fumigant properties, the essential oil of M. longifolia had significantly higher repellency to T. confusum adults than did the other two.  

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Essential oils are volatile mixtures of hydrocarbons with diverse functional groups. In the current study the effect of essential oils from five medicinal plants including Zataria multiflora and Nepeta cataria (Lamiaceae), Tagetes minuta and Artemisia sieberi (Asteraceae), and Trachyspermum ammi (Apiaceae) were analyzed using GC-mass spectrometry. The toxicity of these plant essential oils against the adult stage of the cabbage aphid, Brevicoryne brassicae L. (Hemiptera: Aphididae) was studied using a fumigant assay.GC/Mass analysis revealed that the main essential oils varied between species. The most abundant components in N. cataria, Z. multiflora, T. ammi, T. minuta and A. sieberi were 4a-α, 7-β, 7a-α-nepetalactone (76.8%), carvacrol (62.1%), γ-terpinene (27.1%), limonene (13.0%) and artemisia ketone (48.0%) respectively. The fumigant assays showed that all of these essential oils were toxic to B.brassicae in a dose-dependent manner. The essential oils of N. cataria at 126, 63, 31, 16, 8, and 3 μl L^-1 air caused 94, 76, 52, 46, 36, and 24% mortality within 24 hours, respectively. The same trend was seen when essential oils of the other plants were tested against B. brassicae. These plant essential oils have great potential to be used in integrated pest management especially in greenhouses or other closed systems.

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New sources of botanical pesticides in the management of Sitotroga cerealella (Olivier) infesting rice grains are indispensable in farmers’ quest towards achieving maximum protection of their rice produce. In this study, the efficacy of root and stem bark of Cleistopholis patens as an insecticidal agent against S. cerealella was investigated at 28 ± 2 ºC and 75 ± 6% relative humidity. Moths were exposed to contact and fumigant toxicity test at 0.5-2.5 g/20 g of paddy rice and mortality was assessed at 24, 48, 72 and 96 hours post-treatment respectively. Generally, moth exposed to root powders of C. patens showed higher mortality values (contact: 10 - 93%; fumigant: 13 - 100%) than their counterpart exposed to stem powder (contact: 6.67 - 78%; fumigant: 10 - 95%). Also, lethal doses (LD₅₀ and LD₉₅) revealed that lower doses of C. patens root powder resulted in higher mortality of S. cerealella when compared to that of stem powder. The only exception was observed in LD₉₅ values of stem (6.54 g / 20 g of paddy rice) and root (6.76 g / 20 g of paddy rice) powder of fumigant toxicity test. Both powders of C. patens also significantly reduced adult emergence in treated grains when compared to control. This study showed that powders of stem and root bark of C. patens would provide a much desired wherewithal to synthetic insecticides in the management of S. cerealella infesting rice grains in Nigeria.

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Tetranychus turkestani is one of the most important pests of greenhouse plants in the southern provinces of Iran. Several benefits of using essential oils over chemical pesticides make them appropriate for IPM programs. Contact and fumigant toxicity of the essential oils of Foeniculum vulgare and Citrus limon against the spider mite and its predator, Orius albidipennis were investigated under laboratory conditions. Contact toxicity experiments were conducted at six concentrations, (0, 50, 100, 300, 800 and 2000 ppm) of each essential oil on the mature and immature life stages of the pest, and mortalities were recorded 72 h after exposure. In fumigant toxicity trials, LC₅₀ values of the essential oils were determined on different developmental stages of T. turkestani and O. albidipennis. At 800 and 2000 ppm, both essential oils had high contact toxicity on the eggs, 2^nd instar nymphs and adults of T. turkestani, while the same concentrations caused less mortality on O. albidipennis. No significant phytotoxicity of the essential oils was observed. The mortality rates of T. turkestani and O. albidipennis increased as concentration was increased. Also, the 2^nd instar nymph of T. turkestani was more sensitive to contact application of the essential oils than other developmental stages. In the fumigant toxicity bioassay, LC₅₀ values of the essential oil derived from F. vulgare on the egg, 2^nd instar nymph and adult of T. turkestani were 16.08, 7.98 and 14.06, and the values for C. limon essential oil were 11.6, 9.86 and 11.52 µl × l^-1air, respectively. The highest fumigant toxicity was observed against the 2^nd instar nymphs of the mite. Fumigant toxicity of the essential oils was lower against O. albidipennis than against T. turkestani. This data suggests that the essential oils of these plants have the potential of being employed in the IPM programs of T. turkestani in greenhouse crops, especially cucumber.

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Plant essential oils and their constituents are recognized as proper alternatives to fumigants. Thymus daenensis Celak is one of these plants that have medicinal properties and is endemic to Iran. The essential oil was isolated by hydrodistillation from dry leaves using a modified clevenger-type apparatus and the chemical composition of the oil was assessed via GC and GC-MS. Fourteen compounds (100% of the total composition) were identified. Thymol (57.4%), carvacrol (9.8%), β-caryophyllene (6.9%), γ-terpinene (6.7%) and p-cymene (6.3%) were found to be the major compounds of the essential oil. The fumigant toxicity of the essential oil was tested against 1-3 days old adults of Callosobruchus maculatus (F.) and Sitophilus granarius (L.) at 27 ± 1 °C and 65 ± 5% R. H. in darkness. The mortality of adults was tested at different concentrations (28.12, 40.62, 53.12 and 65.62 µl/l air) and different exposure times. At the highest concentration (65.62 µl/l air), T. daenensis oil caused 90 and 60% mortality with a 3 h exposure on C. maculatus and S. granarius, respectively. Based on LC₅₀ values, C. maculatus (4.22 µl/l air) was significantly more susceptible than S. granarius (6.55 µl/l air). These results show the efficacy of T. daenensis oil for stored-products protection.

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In order to examine possible integration between irradiation and botanical pesticides, combined effects of essential oil from Rosmarinus officinalis L. and gamma radiation were determined on mortality of Callosobruchus maculatus F. (Coleoptera: Bruchidae). Experiments were conducted by pretreatment with essential oil fumigation followed by irradiation and inversely, pretreatment with irradiation followed by essential oil fumigation. The mortality rate was assessed 72 h after last treatment. Integration of gamma radiation and R. officinalis oil enhanced the mortality of C. maculatus compared with control treatments of either irradiation or fumigation alone. Synergistic effects of mortality on 1-2 days old adults of C. maculatus were observed when exposed to combination of gamma radiation and essential oil. It was found that pretreatment with fumigation followed by irradiation was perfectly effective. The study showed that either of the pre- treatments could enhance the susceptibility of the pest to the other treatment. Our findings led to a conclusion that the combination of gamma radiation and R. officinalis oilfumigation has a potential for application in integrated management of C. maculatus.

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The red flour beetle, Tribolium castaneum (Herbst), is one of the most destructive pests attacking stored grain products all over the world. Serious problems assossiated with using synthetic chemical insecticides have strongly demonstrated the need for applying alternative safe compounds such as plant essential oils. The present experiment was conducted to evaluate fumigant toxicity of essential oils from the fresh fruit peel of two Citrus species namely, Citrus sinensis (L.) Osbeck and Citrus paradisi (Macfarlane) against 1 to 7-days-old adults of T. castaneum under laboratoryconditions. Moreover, oviposition deterrence activity of sublethal concentrations of the oils were assessed on the female beetles. All experiments were carried out at 27 ± 1 °C and65 ± 5% r. h. in darkness. Findings indicated the high fumigant toxicity of both essential oils. According to probit analysis, there was no significant differences between C. sinensis (LC₅₀ = 7.27 µl.l^-1 air) and C. paradisi (LC₅₀ = 7.70 µl.l^-1 air) essentialoils. Also, oviposition deterrence activity of the essential oils was significantly increased as concentrations of the oils were increased from 500 to 2500 ppm. In general, the results of our study demonstrated the high efficacy of C. sinensis and C. paradisi oils against T. castaneum.
 

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The potato tuber moth (PTM), Phthorimaea operculella (Zeller), is a major pest of potato, both in the field and storehouses. In this study, we have evaluated the lethal effects and persistence of Zingiber officinale (Roscoe) pure (PEO) and nano-formulated essential oil (NFO) on different developmental stages (egg, male and female adults) of PTM. Essential oil was extracted by hydro-distillation using a Clevenger-type apparatus. The essential oil was analyzed by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS). Nanofibers were produced by electrospinning technique. The morphology of nanofibers was investigated by SEM. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) was used to identify the characteristic functional groups in the PEO, nanofiber and PEO/NFO scaffold. Bioassays were performed in 250 ml glass jars. The essential oil consisted of α-Zingiberene as the most abundant component (14.21%), followed by Ar-curcumene (12.58%), β-sesquiphellandrene (12.48%) and cis-α-bisabolene (10.29%). The results of FTIR spectra showed the establishment of the functional groups of PEO on the structure of the nanofiber. The images of SEM also demonstrated the establishment of PEO in the structure of the nanofiber. LC50 values of PEO and NFO were estimated 75.44 and 30.24µl/l air for eggs, 19.08 and 10.28µl/l air for female adults, and 17.76 and 9.56µl/l air for male adults, respectively. Persistence data showed that nano-formulated essential oil (49 days) in comparison with pure essential oil (15 day) had longer persistence. The results demonstrated that Z. officinale PEO and its nano-formulation could play an important role as natural pesticides for the management of PTM.

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Habrobracon hebetor Say is an idiobiont and gregarious larval ectoparasitoid of many moths. In this study, lethal and sublethal effects of Eucalyptus camaldulensis, Carum carvi and Heracleum persicum essential oils on the demographic parameters of H. hebetor were assessed at 26 ± 2 °C, 60 ± 5% RH, and a photoperiod of 16:8 (L: D) h. Essential oils were obtained from these plants by hydro-distillation method using a Clevenger apparatus. The chemical constituents of essential oils were detected by Gas Chromatography-Mass spectrometry (GC-MS). 250ml Glass vials were used for the fumigant toxicity experiments. In order to assess the sublethal effects, adult wasps were exposed to an LC₂₅ of each essential oil and then the demographic parameters of live parasitoid wasps were studied. Fumigant toxicity with adults indicated that the lethal concentration (LC₅₀) values of the above essential oils against H. hebetor females were 1.116, 0.34 and 3.416μl/l air, respectively. Chemical analysis by GC-MS displayed o-Cymene (15.11%), Carvone (55.8%) and Hexyl butyrate (41.78%) were main constituents of the essential oils of E. camaldulensis, C. carvi and H. persicum, respectively. The results showed that the intrinsic rate of increase (r), finite rate of increase (λ), net reproductive rate (R₀) and gross reproductive rate (GRR) were significantly affected by the essential oils. The highest and the lowest r values were 0.226 and 0.130 day^-1 in control and C. carvi-treated insects, respectively. According to these results, essential oils have suitable potential for the integrated management of stored product pests.

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The use of chemical compounds to prevent corruption and increase the shelf life of agricultural products, including grapes, has many applications. Due to the harmful effects of these compounds on human health and also the tendency of people to use organic products, today the use of low-risk and alternative methods has increased. The use of antimicrobial, antibacterial and antifungal compounds, such as natural essential oils, can be a good way to increase the shelf life of crops. In this study, the effect of thyme essential oil on increasing the shelf life of Fakhri cultivar grapes by two methods of immersion (direct contact) and fumigant (indirect contact) in concentrations (0, 150, 300 and 450 μl / l) In the cold storage with a temperature of 1±2° C and a relative humidity of 90% was tested for 60 days. Traits such as percentage of changes in fruit weight, titratable acidity, total soluble solids, sensory evaluation including fruit texture firmness, Smell and flavor, antioxidant capacity and browning of cluster wood were evaluated. The least percentage of changes in fruit weight and titratable acidity were observed at a concentration of 450 μl /l of thyme essential oil. The control treatment had the highest amount of total soluble solids in fruits (25.2 degrees Brix). Also, the results of sensory evaluation of fruit texture firmness showed that the fumigant method was better than the immersion method with gradual release of essential oil to maintain the firmness of fruit texture better. Sensory evaluation of grape fruit Smell and flavor and taste showed that at high concentrations of essential oil, the sensory evaluation index was lower. Antioxidant capacity was declining in the whole process and fumigant and immersion methods were not significantly different from each other.