Cymbopogon Schoenanthus Essential Oil’s Effect On Bumblebees; Preliminary Results

Résumé: Recently, it has become apparent that some pests especially insects can be controlled by exposure to small concentrations of the essential oils. What is unknown is whether these oils also affect pollinators. Our study on the effect of Cymbopogon schoenanthus (Poaceae) essential oil effect on the more adopted pollinator Bombus terrestris on greenhouse tomatoes crop in Biskra (arid re-gion of Algeria) is part of an FNR project ran by the Center of Scientific and Technical Research on Arid Regions. The aim of this research is to assess C. schoenanthus (Poaceae) essential oil toxicity on bumblebees at concentrations of 0 µl/ml, 20µl/ml and 1000 µl/ml under laboratory conditions. Results showed that concentrations of 20µl/ml were not harmful while pure E O of C. Schoenanthusis was detrimental. The experimentation suggested here presents further evidence partisan the use of conditioning techniques to assess the use of essential oils on tomatoes greenhouse pests.

Publié dans la revue: Journal Algérien des Régions Arides