Mohammadali Mirhosseini

The date palm spider mite, Oligonychus afrasiaticus (McGregor), is one of the most important pests of date palms in Iran. Currently, the application of chemical acaricides is the primary method to control this pest, and annually, a large amount of various types of these chemical pesticides is used against the date palm spider mite. Considering the environmental risks associated with chemical pesticides and the need for safer pest management approaches, this research investigated the acaricidal effects of plant-based compounds including Dayabon, Palizin, Tondexir, garlic ethanolic extract, Azadirachta indica oil, Eruca sativa oil and Raphanus raphanistrum oil; these were compared with abamectin, one of the most commonly used chemical acaricide against date palm spider mite in Bushehr province. Additionally, to assess the synergistic effect of plant oils, the combination of LC20 of these oils with the LC50 of other compounds was tested on the pest. The bioassay experiment showed that among the plant-based compounds, Tondexir and garlic ethanolic extract exhibited the highest and lowest acaricidal activity, with LC50 values of 1031.63 and 26955.74 µL/L, respectively. Furthermore, assessing the combination effect of plant oils with other compounds demonstrated that the combination of Azadirachta indica oil and Eruca sativa oil with all compounds resulted in synergistic effects on the mortality of date palm spider mites. The results of this study reveal that some plant-based compounds and oils have high potential to be used in integrated management programs for this pest; following additional experiments under field conditions, they may serve as promising alternatives to chemical acaricides.