خاصیت حشره‌کشی اسانس گیاه پونه (Mentha pulegium L.) نسبت به شب‌پره مینوز گوجه فرنگی (Tuta absoluta (Meyrick))

The tomato leaf miner, Tuta absoluta (Meyrick) (Lepidoptera: Gelechidae) is a highly destructive pest of tomatoes in greenhouses and fields. Chemical control has been widely used to manage T. absoluta worldwide; however, the problems associated with chemical insecticide applications, such as the development of resistant populations, ecosystem impacts, and non-target organisms, are increasing over time. Plant essential oils are currently being considered as a suitable alternative to synthetic insecticides for insect pest control. The fumigant toxicity of essential oil extracted from pennyroyal (Mentha pulegium L.) against T. absoluta was evaluated in the laboratory of the Plant Protection department, Faculty of Agriculture, Mohaghegh Ardabili University, Ardabil province, Iran. Bioassays were conducted on T. absoluta eggs and second-instar larvae in a growth chamber in 90 mm diameter Petri dishes at 25 ± 2 °C, 65 ± 5% RH and 16:8 (L:D) h. The method of Finney based on probit regression of mortalities according to the logarithms of doses was used to determine LC50 and LC90 values. Mortality of larvae was recorded after 24 h and eggs after 5 days of exposure to the essential oil. The results showed that M. pulegium essential oil has high insecticidal activity against T. absoluta. Egg and larval mortality were significantly affected by the concentration of the essential oil. Egg mortality ranged from 12 to 92% at the tested doses (0.02 to 0.1 µL/L air). Doses of 0.02 to 0.3 µL/L air caused 11.36 to 93.18% larval mortality. The LC50 values of the essential oil were 0.044 and 0.066 µL/L air, and the LC90 values were 0.099 and 0.274 µL/L air for T. absoluta eggs and larvae, respectively. This study demonstrates the potential insecticidal effect of M. pulegium essential oil on T. absoluta eggs and larvae.