Insecticides are substances used to kill insects. They include ovicides and larvicides used against insect eggs and larvae, respectively. Insecticides are used in agriculture, medicine, industry and by consumers. Insecticides are claimed to be a major factor behind the increase in the 20th-century's agricultural productivity. Nearly all insecticides have the potential to significantly alter ecosystems; many are toxic to humans and/or animals; some become concentrated as they spread along the food chain.
Pyrethrum was a genus of several Old World plants now classified as Chrysanthemum or Tanacetum which are cultivated as ornamentals for their showy flower heads. Pyrethrum continues to be used as a common name for plants formerly included in the genus Pyrethrum. Pyrethrum is also the name of a natural insecticide made from the dried flower heads of Chrysanthemum cinerariifolium and Chrysanthemum coccineum. Its active ingredient are pyrethrins.
An essential oil is a concentrated hydrophobic liquid containing volatile chemical compounds from plants. Essential oils are also known as volatile oils, ethereal oils, aetheroleum, or simply as the oil of the plant from which they were extracted, such as oil of clove. An essential oil is "essential" in the sense that it contains the "essence of" the plant's fragrance—the characteristic fragrance of the plant from which it is derived. The term "essential" used here does not mean indispensable or usable by the human body, as with the terms essential amino acid or essential fatty acid, which are so called because they are nutritionally required by a given living organism.
The pyrethrins are a class of organic compounds normally derived from Chrysanthemum cinerariifolium that have potent insecticidal activity by targeting the nervous systems of insects. Pyrethrin naturally occurs in chrysanthemum flowers and is often considered an organic insecticide when it is not combined with piperonyl butoxide or other synthetic adjuvants. Their insecticidal and insect-repellent properties have been known and used for thousands of years.
Pest control is the regulation or management of a species defined as a pest, a member of the animal kingdom that impacts adversely on human activities. The human response depends on the importance of the damage done and will range from tolerance, through deterrence and management, to attempts to completely eradicate the pest. Pest control measures may be performed as part of an integrated pest management strategy.
Sitophilus is a genus of weevils in the tribe Litosomini. Some species are familiar as pests of stored grain, nut, or seed. Notable pest species include the rice weevil, wheat weevil, and maize weevil.
Ricinodendron is a plant genus in the family Euphorbiaceae first described as a genus in 1864. It includes only one known species, Ricinodendron heudelotii, native to tropical Africa from Senegal + Liberia east to Sudan and Tanzania and south to Mozambique and Angola. It produces an economically important oilseed. The tree is known as munguella (Angola), njangsa (Cameroon), bofeko (Zaire), wama (Ghana), okhuen (Nigeria), kishongo (Uganda), akpi, djansang, essang, ezezang and njasang. Two varieties of the tree species are recognized R. heudelotii var. heudelotii in Ghana and R. heudelotii var. africanum in Nigeria and westwards.
Non-pesticidal Management (NPM) describes various pest-control techniques which do not rely on pesticides. It is used in organic production of foodstuff, as well as in other situations in which the introduction of toxins is undesirable. Instead of the use of synthetic toxins, pest control is achieved by biological means.
Push–pull technology is an intercropping strategy for controlling agricultural pests by using repellent "push" plants and trap "pull" plants. For example, cereal crops like maize or sorghum are often infested by stem borers. Grasses planted around the perimeter of the crop attract and trap the pests, whereas other plants, like Desmodium, planted between the rows of maize, repel the pests and control the parasitic plant Striga. Push–pull technology was developed at the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (ICIPE) in Kenya in collaboration with Rothamsted Research, UK. and national partners. This technology has been taught to smallholder farmers through collaborations with universities, NGOs and national research organizations.
Intensive crop farming is a modern form of farming that refers to the industrialized production of crops. Intensive crop farming's methods include innovation in agricultural machinery, farming methods, genetic engineering technology, techniques for achieving economies of scale in production, the creation of new markets for consumption, patent protection of genetic information, and global trade. These methods are widespread in developed nations.
Fish toxins or fish stupefying plants have historically been used by many hunter gatherer cultures to stun fish, so they become easy to collect by hand. Some of these toxins paralyse fish, which can then be easily collected. The process of documenting many fish toxins and their use is ongoing, with interest in potential uses from medicine, agriculture, and industry.
Lonchocarpus laxiflorus is a species of legume in the family Fabaceae. The tree grows to 4–8 meters in height, has grey or yellowish bark and compound leaves. New leaves are accompanied by purple flowers on multi-branched panicles. The fruit is a glabrous papery pod, usually containing one seed. L. laxiflorus is widely distributed in West Africa, Central Africa, the African Great Lakes, and Northeast Africa. It is found in savanna woodlands and dry forested areas, particularly fringing forest near water courses.
Phlobaphenes are reddish, alcohol-soluble and water-insoluble phenolic substances. They can be extracted from plants, or be the result from treatment of tannin extracts with mineral acids. The name phlobaphen come from the Greek roots φλoιὀς (phloios) meaning bark and βαφή (baphe) meaning dye.
Bobgunnia madagascariensis, also called the snake bean plant, is a species of legume in the family Fabaceae.
The maize weevil, known in the United States as the greater rice weevil, is a species of beetle in the family Curculionidae. It can be found in numerous tropical areas around the world, and in the United States, and is a major pest of maize. This species attacks both standing crops and stored cereal products, including wheat, rice, sorghum, oats, barley, rye, buckwheat, peas, and cottonseed. The maize weevil also infests other types of stored, processed cereal products such as pasta, cassava, and various coarse, milled grains. It has even been known to attack fruit while in storage, such as apples.
Tephrosia vogelii, the Vogel's tephrosia, fish-poison-bean or Vogel tephrosia (English), tefrósia (Portuguese) or barbasco guineano (Spanish), is a flowering plant species in the genus Tephrosia.
Strophanthus kombe, the kombe arrow poison, is a vine that grows in the tropical regions of Eastern Africa, and is part of the genus Strophanthus, which contains approximately 38 species. S. kombe contains a cardiac glycoside which directly affects the heart. Historically, both the seeds and roots of the plant were used in the preparation of poison arrowheads used for hunting. Today, the seeds are used pharmaceutically for patients with certain heart conditions that affect blood circulation. The seeds are traded primarily with Europe, but have also been exported to the United States and Japan.
Prostephanus truncatus is commonly referred to as larger grain borer (LGB) with reference to the related Rhyzopertha dominica, which is relatively smaller in length, hence is referred to as the lesser grain borer. P. truncatus is about 6 mm (0.24 in) long as compared to 3 mm (0.12 in) long in Rh. dominica. At optimum conditions of 80% relative humidity and 32 °C (90 °F), and available food, P. truncatus completes its lifecycle within 27 days. It is a serious pest of dried grains, especially maize and dried cassava in West Africa. This beetle is believed to have been introduced into West Africa through food aid from America. It reached Africa through Tanzania in the early 1970s.
Culcasia scandens is an African climbing plant, often epiphytic, with slender, wiry stems, up to 5 m long clinging to tree trunks by means of clasping roots, and growing on forest and stream margins and in savanna. It is native to countries of western tropical Africa from Senegal east and south to Angola.
