Advanced Pest Control Strategies of Fruit Crops

A special issue of Insects (ISSN 2075-4450). This special issue belongs to the section "Insect Pest and Vector Management".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 September 2025 | Viewed by 1018

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Instituto de Ecología A.C., Xalapa, Veracruz, Mexico
Interests: insect–plant–pathogen interactions; insect ecology; physiology and behavior; postharvest treatment

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Guest Editor
Stockbridge School of Agriculture, University of Massachusetts, 270 Stockbridge Road, 207 Fernald Hall, Amherst, MA 01003-9286, USA
Interests: insect sensory ecology and behavior; integrated pest management; insect-plant interactions
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Fruit crops are vital to global food production, but they face significant challenges from various insect pests that can severely impact yield and quality. Traditional pest management that only relies on pesticide applications has become less effective due to the rise in pesticide resistance, regulatory limitations, and health and environmental concerns. This Special Issue will explore innovative and advanced pest management strategies that aim to enhance the sustainability of fruit production systems. Topics will include the development of novel and sustainable integrated pest management (IPM) strategies, new biopesticides, sterile insect techniques, enhancing the efficacy of beneficial organisms, pest-resistant crop varieties, and the implementation of transformative technologies such as precision agriculture, sensor networks, and data-driven decision-making tools. This issue will also cover ecological and economic aspects of novel approaches to pest management in fruit crops such as apples, citrus, grapes, and berries.

This Special Issue will feature original research articles and reviews written by leading entomologists and experts in advanced pest management for fruit crops. The articles included will focus on the latest developments in innovative strategies, including the use of biopesticides, integrated pest management (IPM), and pest-resistant crop varieties. Special emphasis will be placed on cutting-edge technologies such as sensor networks, precision agriculture, and data-driven decision-making tools. Additionally, this issue will explore the role of insect sensory ecology and its applications in developing attract-and-kill strategies.

Dr. Andrea Birke
Dr. Jaime C. Piñero
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Insects is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • sensory ecology
  • behavior
  • IPM
  • biopesticides
  • attract and kill
  • pest monitoring
  • semiochemicals

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

14 pages, 571 KB  
Article
Phytochemical and Insecticidal Activity of Some Thyme Plants’ Essential Oils Against Cryptoblabes gnidiella and Scirtothrips mangiferae on Mango Inflorescences
by Mohammad M. Aljameeli, Nawal Abdulaziz Alfuhaid, Ahmed Ramadan El-Rokh, Samira A. El-Salam, May A. Elhefni, Amira S. El-Rahman, Esraa M. Hussein, Jazem A. Mahyoub, Hayam Elshazly, Hanan S. Alyahya, Shatha I. Alqurashi, Mohamed A. Abdein, EL-Sayed M. Qaoud and Marwa M. Mosallam
Insects 2025, 16(9), 922; https://doi.org/10.3390/insects16090922 - 2 Sep 2025
Viewed by 654
Abstract
Mango fruits are one of the strategic fruit crops in different countries that are attacked by several serious pests such as Cryptoblabes gnidiella and Scirtothrips mangiferae. Natural extracts, especially essential oils, provide several promising insecticide agents to control different insects as an [...] Read more.
Mango fruits are one of the strategic fruit crops in different countries that are attacked by several serious pests such as Cryptoblabes gnidiella and Scirtothrips mangiferae. Natural extracts, especially essential oils, provide several promising insecticide agents to control different insects as an alternative to synthetic insecticides. Using Clevenger-type hydrodistillation, the essential oils of five thyme plants—Thymus vulgaris, Origanum vulgare, Thymus argenteus, Thymus citriodorus, and Origanum syriacum—from Saudi Arabia and Egypt were extracted, and GC/MS analysis was performed. In addition, some chemical parameters of the five species were determined, such as chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, β-carotene, total antioxidant capacity, total phenols, and total flavonoids. Two compounds, thymol and carvacrol, were identified in T. vulgaris and O. vulgare at ratios of 69.45 and 64.82%, respectively. These major compounds were isolated and identified using 1H NMR analysis. The insecticidal potentials of the five essential oils and their pure isolated compounds were evaluated on C. gnidiella and S. mangiferae on mango inflorescences. The results showed that T. vulgaris and O. vulgare oils were the most potent against C. gnidiella (LC50, 183.33 and 164.68 ppm, respectively) and S. mangiferae (18.93 and 16.93 ppm, respectively). Thymol and carvacrol had the highest effect on both insects. Furthermore, the effect of thymol and carvacrol at LC50 values on some biochemical parameters of C. gnidiella was determined. Therefore, thymol and carvacrol from Thymus species are promising compounds that could be used as insecticides against the harmful insects C. gnidiella and S. mangiferae on mango inflorescences. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Pest Control Strategies of Fruit Crops)
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