Insecticidal activity of lemongrass essential oil and its major compounds on velvet caterpillar

The present work aimed to evaluate the insecticidal activity of Cymbopogon citratus essential oil and its major compounds (citral and myrcene) on Anticarsia gemmatalis. The essential oil, citral, myrcene, and a mixture of citral and myrcene were tested at the concentrations of 0.1, 0.3, 0.5, 0.7, and 0.9 % v/v, plus two negative controls (distilled water and Tween-80® 0.5 % v/v) and a positive control (novaluron 0.075 % w/v). Insect mortality was evaluated in 24, 48, 72, and 96 h. According to the results, C. citratus essential oil and the citral-myrcene mixture at 0.9 % v/v were effective in the control of A. gemmatalis, with 96 % and 88 % mortality, respectively, in the first 24 h. At this concentration, citral caused 100 % mortality after 72 h, whereas myrcene had no effect on the caterpillars even after 96 h of exposure. Thus, C. citratus essential oil can be a potential option for the alternative control of A. gemmatalis.