Étude préliminaire des effets in vitro des huiles essentielles de deux plantes aromatiques (Eucalyptus sp. et Mentha spicata) sur les larves de la processionnaire du pin d'Alep et du puceron vert des agrumes

Abstract

Insect pests can cause considerable damage to their host plants. This study focused on two harmful insects that cause considerable damage to plants; the processionary caterpillar that attacks the needles of the Aleppo pine and the green citrus aphid, the main vector of viruses and which causes a general weakening of citrus trees. This work is part of the search for natural substances of plant origin capable of replacing chemical pesticides. He is interested in testing the larvicidal effect of different doses of essential oils (HEs) from two aromatic plants (Eucalyptus sp. and Mentha spicata) on the two aforementioned insects. For the study on the Aleppo pine processionary, we could not reach the required objective due to the high mortality of the controls. While for the green citrus aphid, we were able to highlight the insecticidal effect of the essential oils of the two plants tested. The results obtained in vitro revealed a strong insecticidal activity on the green citrus aphid. The use of essential oils of Eucalyptus sp. and Mentha spicata, made it possible to observe mortality rates of greater than 75% for the three high doses tested (D1=1%, D2=0.5% and D3=0.25%) on the third day. The observations show that mortality increases when the dose is raised, and that mortality in batches treated with Eucalyptus sp HE. is more important than those treated with the HE of the Mentha spicata.