bassiana during storage. De-oiled castor cake, and
farmyard manure based formulations retained better
viability than talc and gypsum based formulations. Talc
and gypsum based formulations had poor growth and
shorter shelf-life. Maximum growth and higher survival
rate during storage in soya lecithin, neem oil and
vermicompost formulation is a major advantage for the
marketing of these biocontrol agents on commercial level.
Use of different oil based formulations for
mycoinsecticides has been extensively studied (Lomer
and Lomer, 2001). It has been suggested that oil
formulation can prevent conidial desiccation, and
improve adhesion of conidia to the hydrophobic surface
of insect cuticle (Inyang et al., 2000; Vimala Devi and
Prasad, 1996). Inyang et al. (2000) reported that
sunflower oil/ Shellsol T formulations enhanced the
infectivity of M. anisopliae for mustard beetle, Phaedon
cochleariae. Similar observations were reported by
Ibrahim et al. (1999) for M. anisopliae. Daoust and
Roberts (1983) reported that the inoculum formulated
in oils increased the efficacy of pathogen and prolonged
viability of conidia. However, further research is required
on large scale biomass production of entomopathogenic
fungi, viability of final products in different formulations
under laboratory and field conditions and their efficacy
in the eco-friendly management of insect pests.