Effect of Essential Oils from Nepeta crispa, Anethum graveolens and Satureja hortensis Against the Stored-product Insect "Ephestia kuehniella (Zeller)"

Essential oils of medicinal plants have insecticidal properties as bio pesticides. In this study fumigant effect of three plant essential oils extracted from Nepeta crispa Willd (Lamiaceae), Satureja hortensis L. (Lamiaceae) and Anethum graveolens L. (Apiaceae) were investigated against third instar larvae of the Mediterranean flour moth, Ephestia kuehniella Zeller (Pyralidae), during 2017 at Urmia University, Iran. Extraction of essential oils was carried out by hydrodistillation using a Clevenger-type apparatus. All of the essential oils were highly effective to E. kuehniella larvae. The highest mortalities produced by essential oil of N. crispa with LC50 value of 6.846 µl L-1 air followed by A. graveolens and S. hortensis with LC50 values of 18.001 and 30.088 µl L-1 air, respectively. There was a direct relationship between insecticidal activity and oils concentration. The results revealed that essential oils from the three aromatic plants have a potential insecticidal activity against the third larvae of the stored-product insect "Zeller" under laboratory conditions and might have paved an effective and friendly environmental treatment technique in Integrated Pest Management (IPM) programs.