Detail:

Dansinghbhai Mehrambhai Bharvad from the Alindra village in the Mendarada taluka in Junagadh district in Gujarat places freshly cut branches of Akada or giant milkweed (Calotropis gigantea) in irrigation channels to control aphid infestation in lucerne (Medicago sativa). Giant milkweeds, white and violet flowers, are commonly found in uncultivated lands and its latex irritates the skin.

Knowledge Provider / Innovator: Ahir Laxmanbhai Alabhai
Agro-Ecological Zone: South Saurashtra Zone (GJ.7)
Address: Alindra, Mendarda, Junagadh
District: Junagadh
State: Gujarat
PIN Code 362260

Crop: Alfalfa
Crop Family: Legumes
Crop Scientific Name: (Medicago sativa)
Crop Vernacular Name: Lusarne soppu, Vilaayiti hullu, Lusan ghas, Kutirai macal.
Formulation: Place freshly cut branches of Akada or giant milkweed (Calotropis gigantea) in irrigation channels
Ingredients: Branches of Akada or giant milkweed (Calotropis gigantea)

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PAS 1:

"Insecticidal activity of Calotropis procera leaves against mustard aphid Lipaphis erysimi (kalt) and its natural predator Coccinella septempunctata (Linn)." -
http://www.aelsindia.com/rjcs_oct2016/8.pdf The leaf extract of C. procera was however, found to be non toxic for the natural predator of aphid Coccinella septempunctata in the present study.

PAS 2:

"Evaluation of Insecticidal Potentialities of Aqueous Extracts from Calotropis procera Ait. Against Henosepilachna elaterii Rossi - In an attempt to find natural and cheaper methods for the control of vegetable pest, locally available plant C. procera was used and two methods of the extraction were evaluated. Shaker aqueous extract of leaf, flower and roots of C. procera proved most effective in the control of Henosepilachna elaterii showed strong repellent activity and thus deterred the insects from feeding. Five percent shaker extract of different plant part gave 100% protection of cucurbit leaf and no larva survived after exposure to 5% extract, 1 and 2.5% concentrations of shaker extracts highly reduced the fecundity and longevity of the insect. Soxhlet extract had no anti-insect activity. The results show the potential of the aqueous shaker extract in the control of vegetable pests."
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/46028246_Evaluation_of_Insecticidal_Potentialities_of_Aqueous_Extracts_from_Calotropis_procera_Ait_Against_Henosepilachna_elaterii_Rossi

PAS 3:

"Chemical Constituents and Uses of Calotropis Procera and Calotropis Gigantea – A Review (Part I – The Plants as Material and Energy Resources) - The traditional and current use of Calotropis procera and C. gigantea, two soft-wooded, xerophytic shrubs of the family Apocynaceae, are reviewed against the background of the plants' chemical constituents and their biological properties. The focus is on the usage of the plants for building materials, natural pesticides, animal feed and bioremediative purposes."
https://benthamopen.com/FULLTEXT/CHEM-7-1

PAS 4:

"Insecticidal Property of Calotropis Gigantea against Papaya Mealybug (Paracoccus Marginatus) on Ailanthus Excelsa – Management of invasive alien insect, the papaya mealy bug, Paracoccus marginatus is of great importance because it even threatened tree species of economic importance. Secondary metabolites of the plants, including herbs and weeds are used as suitable alternative pesticide/insecticide and Calotropis gigantea is one of an ideal plant species for the extraction of pest resistant molecules. The present study focused on the exploration for an alternate ecofriendly plant based insecticide. The bioefficacy of the extracts of the flowers of Calotropis gigantea tested against papaya mealy bug infestation in Ailanthus excelsa found to have insecticidal activity (90-95%) at 2000 ppm within 24 hours of treatment. Individual phytochemical profiling of active botanicals revealed significant variation among pink and white colour flower for tannin, saponins, free fatty acids and alkaloids quantity. HPLC analysis also revealed high amounts of the bioactive compounds such as syringic acid, syringaldehyde and hydroxy benzoic. The insecticidal potential of the flower extracts of C. gigantea may be due to the presence of the individual phenolic compounds which are identified and quantified in significant amount"
http://www.ijirst.org/articles/IJIRSTV4I1069.pdf