Influence of Storage Duration on The Toxicity of Moringa oleifera (Moringaceae) Oil to Tetranychus urticae (Acari: Tetranychidae)

The objective of this study was to evaluate the storage time of Moringa oleifera oil on the acaricidal activity on Tetranychus urticae. Was used amber bottle for storage of oil which remained in a room at 25°C. The storage times considered in the experiment were 0, 30, 60, 90 and 120 days after extraction. At each time a suspension at the concentration of 3% (v/v) was applied on the mite. A completely randomized design with 5 treatments (storage times) was used, containing 8 replicates, composed of 12 females per replicate. The application was carried out by spraying. Mortality data were submitted to the sphericity test and then to analysis of variance, followed by non-linear regression. The analysis of variance revealed that the time factor of storage significantly affected the mortality of the mite, according to an exponential model. Mortality was increasing, reaching a mean of 74.16 ± 8.37% at 120 days. The oil of M. oleifera is promising for the control of T. urticae, improving the acaricidal activity over time.