Impact of Allelochemicals in Crop Protection Management: A Review

One of the most serious issues is biotic stress in plants produced by insect pests, which results in production losses. Synthetic pesticides continue to play an important role in crop protection. Yet, the environmental consequences and health risks caused by excessive or improper use of synthetic pesticides compelled authorities to ban some dangerous ones. As a result, there is an urgent need for unique and alternative insect pest management strategies. Allelopathy is a naturally occurring ecological phenomenon of organism interaction that can be used to manage weeds, insect pests, and illnesses in field crops. Allelopathy can be utilized in field crops after rotation, using cover crops, mulching, crop smothering, and plant extracts for natural pest management. Allelochemicals in soil are adsorbed on soil solids and decomposed during soil movement by chemical and biological reactions. Its behavior is influenced by soil characteristics such as soil texture, organic and inorganic matter, moisture, and organisms, all of which have an impact on phytotoxic activity in soil. Although allelochemicals are produced throughout the plant, root exudation is the principal source of chemical release into the soil environment. Therefore, this review will focus on the role of insect-pest management, factors affecting production and release of allelochemicals, their activity and limitations in insect-pest management.