Field and laboratory evaluations of different botanical insecticides for the control of Dactylopius opuntiae (Cockerell) on cactus pear in Morocco

Chemical Composition and Insecticidal Potential of Six Essential Oils from Morocco against Dactylopius opuntiae (Cockerell) under Field and Laboratory Conditions

“…The first application of black soap is used to remove the thicker wax, which resulted in the exposure of females and nymphs of D. opuntiae to high contact toxicity of the tested oils M. pulegium and O. vulgare. The present study corroborates the findings of [9] using the black soap solution at 60 g/L in combination with C. annuum fruit extract at 200 g/L. This combination showed an excellent control of D. opuntiae females with 87.31% at 7 days after application.…”

“…However, the application of the extract C. annum alone at 200 g/L showed less mortality of females with 18.40%. The same study reported that the double application of black soap at 60 g/L over a 3-day spray interval significantly increased the mortality of adult females up to 82.5% at 3 days after the second application [9]. The lethal mechanisms involved in use of soaps and detergents are the wax removal, repellency or cell membrane disruption, arthropod dislodging, and drowning [68,69].…”

“…The highest concentration of the tested oils (5%) was used for its efficacy against D. opuntiae nymphs and mature females. The Moroccan detergent black soap at 60 g/L, manufactured from natural fatty acids derived from olive oil, was selected for its role in degradation of the cuticular wax [9]. The soap solution was sprayed first on cladodes of the same size followed by EOs using a 1 L hand sprayer.…”

“…Nymphs and adult females of D. opuntiae feed directly on plants by sucking sap on the cladode, causing drying, weakening, and eventually death of the plant host [4]. Several promising integrated pest management options (host plant resistance, biological control, and biopesticides) for the control of the cochineal are being developed in Morocco [5][6][7][8][9].…”

Life history of Dactylopius opuntiae (Hemiptera: Dactylopiidae) on Moroccan resistant cactus germplasm

“…Considering the urgency of the mealybug, and to avoid the spread of this epidemic, the Ministry of Agriculture, Maritime Fishing, Rural Development, and Water and Forests-Morocco, put in place a major emergency plan for the control of this mealybug in 2016. This plan also included a research program covering the most important management elements such as host plant resistance [23], pesticides, beneficial insects [24,25,26,27,28], and biopesticides [29]. Of all the investigated research pathways, the identification of ten mealybug-resistant genotypes is the part that offers great hope for the revival of the cactus industry at the present time [23].…”