Chemical Composition of Essential Oil from<i>Eucalyptus citriodora</i>Leaves and Insecticidal Activity Against<i>Myzus persicae</i>and<i>Frankliniella schultzei</i>

Abstract

Essential oils, volatile compounds obtained from plants, provide an alternative approach for controlling agricultural pests due to problems with conventional chemical products, such as insect resistance, environmental issues and human health concerns. This work aimed to extract essential oil from Eucalyptus citriodora to assess its chemical composition and insecticidal activity against the green peach aphid (Myzus persicae) and thrips (Frankliniella schultzei). The essential oil was obtained by hydrodistillation using the Clevenger apparatus and analyzed by gas chromatography with a flame ionization detector and mass spectrometry (GC-FID and GC-MS). A Potter tower was used to spray the insects with the essential oil solutions. The major components found in E. citriodora essential oil were citronellal (29.31 %), geraniol (27.63 %), β-citronellol (14.88 %) and δ-cadinene (6.32 %). Mortality of M. persicae and F. schultzei nymphs were 85.5 % and 34.8 %, respectively, using essential oil at 1 % (w v−1). Estimated values of LC50 (0.40 % w v−1) and LC90 (1.15% w v−1) for M. persicae evidences the potential use of E. citriodora essential oil in controlling this pest.