Neem controls grasshoppers

Subsistence farmers in the Sahel could protect their crops against grasshoppers by making sprays from locally-grown neem trees. Sprays made from ground neem seeds are effective in reducing the amount of damage done to cereal crops by grasshoppers. Indian scientists showed, as far back as 1962, that sprays made from neem were effective against locusts. But those sprays are made with techniques that are not available to villagers in the Sahel. So trials have recently been carried out in Niger to see if the same sort of protection could be achieved by simply grinding up neem seeds and spraying them on to crops. Field trials were carried out at the Sahelian Centre of the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT). Seeds collected from locally-grown neem trees were pulverised and shell added to water. Results showed that spray made in this way was not only as effective as the more refined neem sprays but also as effective as the commonly used chemical spray. The trial also showed that even five days after the crops were first sprayed there was still some protection. Dr E B Radcliffe Department of Entomology, University of Minnesota, St Paul, MN 55108, USASubsistence farmers in the Sahel could protect their crops against grasshoppers by making sprays from locally-grown neem trees. Sprays made from ground neem seeds are effective in reducing the amount of damage done to cereal crops by grasshoppers...