Botanical Pesticides in Management of Common Bean Pests: Importance and Possibilities for Adoption by Small-scale Farmers in Africa

Abstract

Botanical Pesticides (BPs) have been cited and are used as alternative to synthetic pesticides in agricultural systems worldwide. The BPs are believed to be safe to the environment and are used in pest control to avoid pesticidal pollution, which is a universal problem. In this review, authors provide comprehensive information on the use of BPs in management of common bean pests in Africa. This piece of literature is useful due to major negative side effects to the environment as well as human health arising from synthetic chemicals. It is due to this reason that the authors composed this review to provide insights on potentiality of the BPs in Africa. Generally, it is believed that majority of Africans, feel that BPs are their heritage, thus any technology derived from the BPs is likely to be highly adopted. This review highlights importance, preparation and different methods of applying the BPs so that farmers and other users of this document can easily understand quick methods of using BPs as alternative to synthetic pesticides in combating common bean pests in Africa. Furthermore, areas for future research have been highlighted to establish the need of moving the BPs industry forward for pest management in common bean and other crops in Africa.