BOTANICAL PESTICIDES AND THEIR APPLICATIONS IN INSECT PEST MANAGEMENT

Pest management is facing economic and ecological challenge worldwide due to human and environmental hazards caused by majority of the synthetic pesticide chemicals. Identification of novel effective insecticidal compounds is essential to combat increasing resistance rates.Botanical pesticides have long been touted as attractive alternatives to synthetic chemical pesticides for pest management because botanicals reputedly pose little threat to the
environment or to human health. Botanical pesticides are naturally occurring chemicals extracted or derived from plants that are used to control pests. They play a vital role in integrated pest management (IPM) by offering a safer, more environmentally friendly alternative to synthetic pesticides. A number of plant substances have been considered for use as pest antifeedants, repellents and toxicants, but apart from some natural mosquito repellents,
a little commercial success has ensued for plant substances that modify arthropod behaviour.