• Korean Journal of Organic Agriculture
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.911-921
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• 2015

We evaluated two herbal plants, basil (Ocimum basilicum) and lemon balm (Melissa officinalis), for their potential as repellent plants in the management of striped flea beetle (Phyllotreta striolata), in organic production of chinese cabbage. It was confirmed that striped flea beetle avoided these two herbal plants in olfactometer experiment. We conducted field experiment in which the suppressive effect of the two selected herbal plants and cruciferous crops preferred by striped flea beetle were evaluated through cultivating as inter crops and border crops, respectively. In inter-cropping experiment, unlike in vitro test, the density of striped flea beetle was low in basil- or mustard-intercropping cultivation plot, but high in lemon balm-intercropping cultivation plot. In border cropping experiment, the density of striped flea beetle on chinese cabbage in lemon balm or basil cultivation plot were approximately zero. As a result of this study, we think that border cropping of lemon balm or basil can be used to reduce preventively striped flea beetle of chinese cabbage under organic farming system.