BOTANICAL CONTROL OF PLANT DISEASES IN NIGERIA: CURRENT STATUS, POTENTIAL CHALLENGES AND THE WAY FORWARD

Abstract

Available literature is replete with a reasonable number of active plant chemical substances that have useful properties for crop protection, which are cheap and locally available to farmers, often harmless to humans and animals and are rarely toxic to plants when compared with synthetic pesticides. Both cultivated and wild plants supply a number of plant protection properties. The available, updated information on the production, formulation, and accessibility to farmers the formulated products of almost 100% of biocontrol products of plant origin is lacking in Nigeria. In many developed countries, pesticides of plant origin have been formulated into readily available and easy to apply products. Several researches have revealed the potentials of these botanical extracts as preservatives and having antimicrobial action against pathogenic organisms affecting crops. These findings call for the replacement of chemically synthesized preservatives with naturally derived ones. The aim of this review is to highlight, update and discuss the existing information on the antimicrobial plants of Nigeria, the limitations on their adoption and the possible suggestions on how to ensure large scale formulation and commercialization of botanical crop protection products.