The application of essential oils as a next-generation of pesticides: recent developments and future perspectives

Abstract The overuse of synthetic pesticide, a consequence of the rush to increase crop production, led to tremendous adverse effects, as they constitute a major pollutant for both soils and water, with a high toxicity towards humans and animals and, at the same time, led to development of pest resistance. In the last period, the researches were directed towards finding new solutions with a lower toxicity, less damaging behaviour towards the environment, and a better specificity of action. In this context, the use of essential oils, a complex and unique mixture of compounds, can be considered for the next-generation pesticides. This review aims to present the main applications of the essential oils as insecticides, herbicides, acaricides, and nematicides, as they emerged from the scientific literature published in the last 5 years (2015 to present). From the identified articles within the time period, only those dealing with essential oils obtained by the authors (not commercially available) were selected to be inserted in the review, characterized using established analytical techniques and employed for the envisaged applications. The review is concluded with a chapter containing the main conclusions of the literature study and the future perspectives, regarding the application of essential oils as next-generation pesticides.