Can tropical basil be integrated in vegetable crop pest management?

To address human and environmental health issues related to the use of synthetic pesticides, it is important to explore other ecological pest management approaches. Within this context, a study was conducted to evaluate the toxic and repellent effect of Ocimum gratissimum L. (Lamiaceae) on Myzus persicae S. (Aphididae). The toxicity of O. gratissimum essential oil (EO) was evaluated on M. persicae comparing 3 concentrations (0.001%; 0.01% and 0.1%) to a control (15% sucrose). Mortality rate and fecundity were assessed for each concentration. The observations were made daily, for 4 days, on 12 replicates per treatment. To test the repellent effect of O. gratissimum plants, 2 treatments were compared: a group of 8 Amaranthus cruentus L. (Amaranthaceae) plants with 1 plant of O. gratissimum in the middle and a group of 9 A. cruentus plants (control). The distribution of aphids was analyzed 12 days after the middle plant infestation (20 aphids per plant) for each treatment (6 replicates per treatment). O. gratissimum EO was found toxic from a concentration of 0.01%, with a mortality rate of 34% versus 12% for the control ; The fecundity felt from 30 larvae after 4 days (control) to 15 larvae for the 3 doses of the EO. The analysis with the generalized linear mixed model with Poisson error distribution followed by Turkey test (5 %) showed that EO is significantly more toxic than the control, both for mortality and fecundity (p <0.001). In association test, the population of M. persicae (15 aphids per plant) was significantly (p<0,001) lower when A. cruentus plants was associated with O. gratissimum plant than with the control (22 aphids per plant). Furthermore, the population increases gradually as one moves away from the infestation point in association test whereas it decreases in the control. With regards to these results, it appears that O. gratissimum has biocide effects on M. persicae. This plant may be used in an integrated pest management strategy in the production of vegetable to reduce the use of synthetic pesticides and avoid chemicals residues.