Insecticidal activity of fermented Calatropis gigantea L and Crescentea cujete L. extract combination against rice pests and natural enemies

Abstract

Farmer’s use of synthetic pesticides on rice is still high and therefore needs to be reduced. The study aims to examine the insecticidal activity of fermented C. gigantea and C. cujete extract mixture against pests and natural enemies and its impact on rice production. The extracts mixture was applied to the rice crop eight times with concentrations of 1%, 2.5%, 4.0% 5.5% and 7.5%. The results showed that all concentrations significantly reduced the S. Innotata and C. medinalis population and their damage intensity compared to the farmers’ treatment. However, these extracts did not adversely affect natural enemies, like Coccinellidae, Aranea, Zygoptera and Paederinae families, and tended to increase rice production. Therefore, these data showed that the application of fermented two-extract combinations was effective in controlling rice pests without any impact on natural enemies.