Kampala — Farmers could use extracts of the neem tree to control pests that attack vegetables, research done in Makerere University has revealed.

Dr Anne Akol, a lecturer at the Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, found that neem tree extracts could kill several cabbage pests. She said only low doses of the extract were needed to kill the insects, and that farmers in Kenya were already using the neem extracts to control pests.

"Neem doesn't kill the insects immediately, but it causes abnormal growth to the insects," she said.

She advised farmers not to collect extracts from different neem trees as trees vary in the concentration of the natural pesticide. Some trees have higher concentrations than others.

Akol completed her research in 2001. By setting up experiments in a laboratory, she established that the neem extract could kill cabbage pests like aphids and caterpillars.

She however she did not establish how many other pests could be killed using neem.