Insecticidal Effect of Clary Sage (Salvia sclarea) Essential oil Against Callosobruchus maculatus (Col: Bruchidae) and Tribolium confusum (Col: Tenebrionidae)

Background: Nowadays stored–product insect pests are controlled by pesticides and chemical fumigant compounds. The continueous use of chemical pesticides is harmful for non–target creatures specially humans and other mammals. Beside they polluted the environment. Objective: Accoring to the studies, the essential oil of Labiatae plants have insecticidal activity against some pests. In this study, the fumigant toxicity of Clary Sage essential oil (Labiatae) against two important stored – product pests, was tested. Methods: Clary Sage was collected from mountains Chaloos road and was dried in shadow. Then it's essential oil was extracted by water–distillation using a Clevenger – type apparatus. The effects of the essential oil on adult insects were tested and the lethality was calculated using a bioassay method. Results: The efficient amount of volatile oil of dried plant was 0.1% (v/w). Also the LC50 of mentioned essential oil, for Callosobruchus maculatus and Tribolium confusum after 24 hours, was 67.71 and 1131.16 μl/l air in respect. Conclusion: The power of fumigant toxicity of essential oil extracted from Clary Sage, is considerable specially against Callosobruchus maculatus in comparision with conventional chemical insecticides and other botanical compounds. Thus, cultivating mass amounts of this plant and use of the oil is likely being a suitable substitute for chemical pesticides in the future.