EVALUATION OF INSECTICIDAL ACTIVITY OF BOERHAVIA DIFFUSA AGAINST CERTAIN STORED PRODUCT INSECTS.

Stored grains, cereals, and their products are the important sources of the world food; therefore effective conservation of this prime resource is important for subsistence of mankind. Maize, rice, and wheat are a few of the most consumed grains, while, chickpea supplement world food demands and is also a major source of animal feed. Globally, insect pest of stored grains causes the highest qualitative and quantitative losses to stored commodities that may range from 10-40%. Most of this damage is caused by Triboliumcastanineumcausing up to 40% reduction in grain weight. It consumes endosperm of the seeds leaving them with coagulating consistency and moldy smell. In order to save these grains from spoilage, there is a need of an efficient control measure. Callosobruchuschinensis that may be found attacking pulses, the larvae and pupae are normally only found in cells bored within the seeds of pulses. Plant derived insecticides have distinct advantages over organic synthetic insecticides. They do not leave residues in food chain and are more readily biodegradable. Therefore, they are less likely to contaminate the environment and may be less toxic to mammals and other useful organisms. Present study was under taken to evaluate the insecticidal/ toxic effect of the leaves extract of Boerhaviadiffusa(Thazhuthama / Punarnava) on stored product pests such as Triboliumcastanineumand Callosobruchuschinensis.