Secondary Metabolites and Eco-Friendly Techniques for Agricultural Weed/Pest Management

摘要

In agro-ecosystems, pests (insects, weeds, and other plant’s parasites) compete with crops for edaphic resources, negatively affecting quality and crop yields [1]. Nowadays, synthetic pesticides, easy to apply and accessible to farmers, are the most common and effective methods for pest management [2]. Nevertheless, the negative impact of these chemicals on the environment, human health, and the development of herbicides/pesticides-resistance are shifting the attention to alternative pest control technologies based on natural compounds [3,4,5,6]. Therefore, new eco-friendly agronomic techniques and the use of natural or natural-like molecules might represent a valid alternative strategy for pest control in the framework of sustainable agriculture [7,8,9].