IN VITRO SCREENING OF THE INSECTICIDAL ACTIVITY OF Salvia microphylla (Lamiaceae)

Aphids are important pests in fields and orchards. The use of chemical insecticides as the main control method resulted in many ecological and health problems. Thus, the development of alternative methods, such as botanical bio-pesticides becomes indispensable in recent years. In this context, we studied the insecticidal and repellent effects of different concentrations of essential oils (EOs) and aqueous extracts from Salvia microphylla (Lamiaceae) against Aphis craccivora aphids, under laboratory conditions. The results showed that higher concentrations of extracts (10000 ppm for EOs and 10% for aqueous solutions) proved significant aphicidal activity, where mortality rates of 100% and 74% were noticed, respectively. Furthermore, aqueous extract at 10% concentration recorded the highest repellent effect (repellency rate = 71.8%). Therefore, the use of extracts from S. microphylla may constitute an important tool in integrated pest management.