Plant Extracts and Essential Oils: Biocontrol Approaches for Pest, Disease, and Weed Management
A special issue of Agriculture (ISSN 2077-0472). This special issue belongs to the section "Crop Protection, Diseases, Pests and Weeds".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 25 March 2026 | Viewed by 33
Special Issue Editor
Interests: bio-pesticide; plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR); natural compounds; plant growth regulation; biological invasion; bio-stimulant
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
In agricultural production practices, common issues such as crop diseases, insect pests, and weeds are often addressed through control measures including manual and chemical methods. Manual control is time-consuming, labor-intensive, and prone to recurrence, while chemical control not only poses risks of environmental pollution but also often induces resistance and results in unsatisfactory outcomes. With growing emphasis on sustainable agricultural development, the use of natural products for biological control has emerged as a new trend in the modern management of crop diseases, pests, and weeds. These natural products, such as plant extracts, as well as essential oils, contain active ingredients that exhibit insecticidal, antimicrobial, and herbicidal properties, enabling effective biocontrol. Biocontrol methods are not only environmentally friendly due to their natural biodegradability but also offer broad application prospects owing to their multi-target effects, which reduce the likelihood of resistance of target species.
We invite original research, reviews, short communications, and case studies on a broad range of topics focusing on the utilization of natural substances as biocontrol agents in agricultural practice for the purpose of controlling pests, pathogens and weeds. This Special Issue aims to provide insights into the current state of biocontrol in agriculture, offering valuable information for researchers and farmers that are interested in sustainable agriculture.
Prof. Dr. Hua Shao
Guest Editor
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Keywords
- plant extracts
- essential oil
- GC/MS
- biological control
- biopesticide
- plant disease
- anti-microbial
- insecticidal
- herbicidal
- phytotoxic
- weed management
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