The potential of NeemAzal for the control of coffee leaf pests

The effects of a neem seed extract (NeemAzal™ T/S) on two pests attacking coffee leaves, the coffee leaf miner (Leucoptera coffeella) and the coffee red mite (Oligonychus ilicis), and on the predatory mite Iphiseiodes zuluagai were evaluated. Greenhouse cage experiments were carried out to evaluate the repellence of neem on the oviposition of L. coffeella. Females of L. coffeella oviposited on coffee seedlings treated with 0.1 g/l of azadirachtin, but mine development stopped when leaves with eggs or larvae of L. coffeella were treated with 0.025 to 0.1 g/l of azadirachtin. No adults emerged from neem treated leaves. Survival of O. ilicis was shorter on leaves treated with neem, but longer than on ethion treated leaves. The instantaneous rate of increase (ri) of O. ilicis decreased linearly with increasing neem concentration and negative values of ri were obtained with concentration above 0.065 g/l of azadirachtin. Survival of the predatory mite I. zuluagai was not affected by contacting neem-treated leaf or ingesting prey-fed neem. The potential of neem to control two important pests occurring in coffee plantations was demonstrated in this study, especially as it was not lethal to an important predator commonly found in coffee agroecosystems in Brazil.