Andrographis

Common name: Indian chiretta, King of bitters
Scientific name: Andrographis paniculata
Family: Acanthaceae

Whole plant (Stoll, 2000: p. 166)

Repellent (Prakash; Rao, 1997: 21)

Materials	Method of preparation	How to use	Target pests
Plant extract (Stoll, 2000: p. 166) 2 kg of fresh plant 10 grams of well-crushed dried chili pods 1 liter of cow's urine Water Grinder Pail	Grind plants in 250 ml of water. Add cow's urine and chili. Dilute filtrate with 10 liters of water. Allow this solution to stand for sometime. Strain.	Spray on infested plants thoroughly. Spray early morning or late afternoon.	Aphids Melon worms Thrips Whiteflies

Select plant parts that are free from diseases.
When storing the plant parts for future usage, make sure that they are properly dried and are stored in an airy container (never use plastic container), away from direct sunlight and moisture. Make sure that they are free from molds before using them.
Use utensils for the extract preparation that are not use for your food preparation and for drinking and cooking water containers. Clean properly all the utensils every time after using them.
Make sure that you do not have direct contact with the crude extract while in the process of the preparation and during the application.
Harvest all the mature and ripe fruits before plant extract application.
Always test the plant extract formulation on a few infested plants first before going into large scale spraying. When adding soap as an emulsifier, use a potash-based one.
Wear protective clothing while applying the extract.
Wash your hands after handling the plant extract.

None known during the write-up, however take extra caution as extract maybe harmful to people with very sensitive skin.

None known during the write-up

External links

Prakash, A.; Rao, J. (1997): Botanical pesticides in agriculture. CRC Press. USA.
Stoll, G. (2000): Natural Crop Protection in the Tropics Margraf Verlag. Weikersheim.

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