Plant Essential Oils as Biopesticides: Applications, Mechanisms, Innovations, and Constraints

The advent of the “Green Revolution” was a great success in significantly increasing crop productivity. However, it involved high ecological costs terms excessive use synthetic agrochemicals, raising concerns about agricultural sustainability. Indiscriminate pesticides resulted environmental degradation, development pest resistance, and possible dangers to variety nontarget species (including plants, animals, humans). Thus, sustainable approach necessitates exploration viable ecofriendly alternatives. Plant-based biopesticides are attracting considerable attention this context due their target specificity, ecofriendliness, biodegradability, safety for humans other life forms. Among all relevant biopesticides, plant essential oils (PEOs) or active components being widely explored against weeds, pests, microorganisms. This review aims collate information related expansion advancement research technology on applications PEOs as biopesticides. An insight into mechanism action PEO-based bioherbicides, bioinsecticides, biofungicides is also provided. With aid bibliometric analysis, found that ~75% documents having biopesticidal potential were published last five years, with an annual growth rate 20.51% citation per document 20.91. Research properties receiving adequate from European (Italy Spain), Asian (China, India, Iran, Saudi Arabia), American (Argentina, Brazil, United States America) nations. Despite widespread acceptance by governments, they face many challenges inherent nature (lipophilicity volatility), production costs, manufacturing constraints. To overcome these limitations, incorporation emerging innovations like nanoencapsulation PEOs, bioinformatics, RNA-Seq biopesticide has been proposed. novel technological interventions, have be used management future.