Aphicidal activity of farnesol against the green peach aphid - Myzus persicae.

Background: Myzus persicae (Hemiptera: Aphididae) is considered one of most important agricultural pests in the world. It is one of the main pests in protected pepper crops under glasshouse conditions in Southeastern Spain, but its control is limited as a consequence of the few available authorized insecticides and their incompatibility with the natural enemies. Some essential oils and pure compounds such as anise (Pimpinella anisum) or farnesol are repellent and/or toxic to aphids.

Fumigant Toxicity in Sulzer (Hemiptera: Aphididae): Controlled Release of (anethole from Microspheres.

-anethole is a phenylpropanoid that is the main compound found in the essential oils (EOs) of anise and fennel seeds, and either fumigant or direct contact activity of this compound has been demonstrated against aphids and stored product pests. In this work, solid microspheres were prepared by three methods-oil emulsion entrapment, spray-drying, and complexed with β-cyclodextrin. Fumigation activity of each microsphere preparation was tested against the green peach aphid, Sulzer (Hemiptera: Aphididae), on pepper leaves.