article · International Journal of Advanced Multidisciplinary Research and Studies
Research conducted in Nkongoa evaluated the effect of common peasant-use insecticides on insect pests damaging African eggplant crops. Field trials compared two plots managed by a farmer, one treated with insecticides and one left untreated, observing stems, leaves, and fruits. The primary insect pests identified were whiteflies, aphids, and flea beetles attacking foliage, alongside the eggplant shoot and fruit borer damaging stems and fruits. Insecticide applications significantly reduced pest damage and infestation across all measured areas. Foliar attack rates from aphids, whiteflies, and flea beetles dropped substantially in the treated plot compared to the untreated plot. Furthermore, shoot and fruit borer damage on fruits decreased by more than half, with a similar reduction on stems. Insect populations per leaf were also notably suppressed following chemical treatment.
African eggplant is an important horticultural crop vulnerable to severe insect pest pressure that reduces yield and fruit quality. By measuring the specific baseline damage caused by key pests and documenting the precise reduction achieved with field treatments, these findings provide essential local data to guide more effective and balanced pest management decisions for vegetable growers.
This applied field research informs smallholder farmers and agricultural extension services on managing specific eggplant pests. While the study evaluates existing peasant-use insecticides in real farm conditions, the abstract does not name the specific chemical formulations tested. Commercial application remains at the field validation stage, serving primarily as baseline data for developing targeted or biorational chemical control programmes rather than a standalone market-ready product.
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The search for a crop protection strategy against pests led us to research the effect of certain insecticides for peasant use on the African eggplant Solanum aethiopicum (Solanaceae). To this end, we carried out observations in Nkongoa (towards Mfou) on leaves, fruits and stems of S. aethiopicum in two fields previously set up by a farmer and differing by a treatment based on insecticides. The results showed that the damage caused on the leaves is caused by the whiteflies Bemisia tabaci (Aleyrodidae), the aphids Aphis gossypii (Aphididae) and the flea beetles Epithrix sp. (Chrysomelidae) while those caused on fruits and stems are mainly due to the eggplant shoot and fruit borer Leucinodes orbonalis (Pyralidae). The average leaf attack rates of S. aethiopicum due to aphids, whiteflies and flea beetles were higher in the untreated site (11.47±2.88% for A. gossypii; 14.45±2.69 % for Bemisia tabaci and 34.46±4.80% for Epithrix. sp) compared to the site treated with insecticides (4.30±1.33% for A. gossypii; 10.66±2.69% for Bemisia tabaci and 10.84±2.34% for Epithrix sp). This attack rate kept the same dynamic for L. orbonalis on the stems and fruits: high in the untreated site (11.25 ± 3.78% on the fruits and 5.41 ± 2.94% on the stems), compared to the treated site (5.51±1.83% on the fruits and 1.25±0.87% on the stems). The average number of individuals of A. gossypii and B. tabaci per leaf of S. aethiopicum was lower in the treated site (0.32±0.12 individuals/leaf for A. gossypii and 1.72±0 .66 individuals/leaf for B. tabaci) than in the untreated site (3.97±0.75 individuals/leaf for A. gossypii and 7.77±1.29 individuals/leaf for B. tabaci). These results are an asset in the search for possibilities of biorational use of insecticides in the chemical control of eggplant pests.
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DOI: 10.62225/2583049x.2026.6.4.6741
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