natural-products-in-plant-pest-management

xPrefaceantimicrobials owing to various distinct advantages. Botanicals, being thenatural derivatives, are biodegradable, and do not leave toxic residues orbyproducts to contaminate the environment. The main thrust of recentresearch in the area has been to evolve alternative control strategies thateventually reduce dependency on synthetic fungicides. Recently, in differentparts of the world, emphasis has been placed on exploitation of higher plantproducts as the novel chemotherapeutants for plants because of their nontoxicity,systemicity and biodegradability. To date, different plant productshave been formulated as botanical pesticides for large-scale applications forthe eco-friendly management of plant pests and as an alternative to syntheticpesticides in crop management. These products are cost-effective and havelow toxicity to humans and livestock. Therefore, such products from higherplants may be exploited as the eco-chemical and biorational approach inintegrated plant protection programmes. The interests and trends in themodern society for ‘green consumerism’ involving fewer synthetic ingredientsin the agriculture industry may favour the approval of plant-basedproducts as the safe alternative strategy in managing plant pests. Naturalplant chemicals will certainly play a pivotal role in the near future for pestcontrol in industrialized and developing countries as well. Because of theirbiodegradable nature, systemicity following application, ability to alter thebehaviour of target pests and their favourable safety profile, the botanicalpesticides are considered the vital tools in achieving the evergreen revolutionand in the ecological strategy of controlling agricultural pests.To date, natural plant products for pest management form the frontierareas of research on a global scale. The present book deals with the currentstate and future prospects of botanical pesticides in the eco-friendly managementof plant pests. Looking at the growing interest of professionals and thegeneral public alike, it seemed imperative to produce a book that encompassesas much information as possible, with an emphasis on the exploitation ofplant products in the possible management of agricultural pests. The bookmay be useful to many, including plant pathologists, microbiologists, entomologists,plant scientists and natural product chemists. It is a compilationof invited chapters from eminent scientists and professors from educationalinstitutions and research organizations of different countries. The bookaddresses different topics under the domain of natural compounds inagricultural pest management and is an attempt to include notable anddiversified scientific works in the field carried out by leading scientists inthe world.The book harbours a total of 13 chapters contributed by eminent scientistsworking in the field so as to offer relevant and practical information oneach topic. Different issues, including the global scenario on the applicationof botanical pesticides, plant products in the control of mycotoxins, the commercialapplication of botanical pesticides and their prospects in green consumerism,natural products as allelochemicals, their efficacy against viraldiseases and storage pests, and bioactive products from fungal endophytes,have been covered in the book. I am very grateful to the contributors for theirgenerous and timely responses in spite of their busy academic schedules.