Insect frass is considered as a sustainable resource for plant nutrition. This new amendment is characterized by a high salinity (EC) which constitutes an issue for its agronomic utilization. The objective of this work is to evaluate the effect of four organic amendments with different EC: frass of Hermetia illucens (15.19 mS/cm), frass of Tenebrio molitor (6.47 mS/cm), vermicompost (2.07 mS/cm), and cattle manure (1.33 mS/cm), on zucchini crop. The results showed a great improvement of the agronomic parameters of zucchini using frass of T. molitor insects. This study shows that insect frass could be potential alternatives of conventional amendments and may have positive impact on sustaining agricultural production.

Auxin application plays a crucial role in successfully propagating and cultivating Rosa damascena Mill., a valuable plant species with cultural and economic significance. In this study, we aimed to investigate the effects of auxin dose and leaf presence on rooting success and nutrient uptake efficiency in Rosa damascena cuttings. Our results demonstrated that applying IBA significantly improved rooting success and nutrient absorption capacity, with a concentration of 1000 ppm being the most effective, resulting in a remarkable rooting percentage (48 ? 6%), increased root length (2.52 ? 0.25 cm) and improving leaf area (70.18 ? 5.10 cm2). The inclusion of leaves on cuttings has greatly magnified root success (90 ? 10%), leaf area (98.86 ? 17.86 cm2) and nutrient absorption efficiency, highlighting the vital role of leaves in early root development. Our findings provide valuable insights into the development of sustainable and productive cultivation methods for this significant plant species. Furthermore, our investigation emphasized the importance of optimizing auxin application, with leafy cuttings treated with 1000 ppm of auxin showing the most promising results regarding growth attributes, nutrient assimilation and survival rate.

The black soldier fly, Hermetia illucens (Diptera: Stratiomyidae), is a cosmopolitan fly. Its feeding behaviour, high productivity and the high value of its larvae in macronutrients (mainly lipids and proteins) makes this species one of the promising candidates for large scale insect farming and organic waste management. The reproductive rate, female oviposition preference and oviposition attractants of H. illucens are understudied. A better knowledge of the attractants involved in oviposition site choice would help maximising black soldier fly reproductive success. The current study aims to compare the efficacy of four food attractants on the oviposition activity of H. illucens females. The trial was conducted in a cage (11 × 1.25 × 0.9 m) with a volume of 12.38 m³ and containing 83,610 adults (6750 adults/m³). The cages were placed in a rearing room where the conditions were: T = 28 ± 1 °C, RH = 70 ± 5%, photoperiod of 16 h light: 8 h dark and light intensity = 8140 Lux). The tested feeds included a rabbit feed, fish waste (sardine, sardinella, and anchovy waste), a mixture of tropical fruits (pineapple, banana, papaya and mango), and fresh cattle manure. The performance of each feed attractant was evaluated in terms of the mass of eggs laid on the laying medium. This study showed that fruit mixture is the most efficient attractant, followed by fresh cattle manure and fish waste while the rabbit feed was the least efficient. The results of this study can be used to optimise the reproduction of the black soldier fly.

Agricultural activities generate important amount of crop residues that need to be managed in appropriate way usingecofriendly and cost effective tools. The mealworm Tenebrio molitor (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae) is a potential candidate to valorize crop residues thatcan produce atthe same time an alternative feed based on insect larvae. Four crop residues (citrus, tomato, pepper and potato) mixedwith wheat bran (ratio 50:50) were evaluated as diets for mass rearing of T. molitor under controlled environmental conditions (T= 28 ± 1°C; RH=70 ± 5 % and total darkness). Five zootechnical parameters (weight gain, growth rate, mortality rate, weight of consumed feed and conversion rate) were adopted to evaluate thegrowth and life developmental traits of larvae during 45 days. The effect of crop residues used as diet had a significant impact on bothweight gain and growth rate. Importantly, crop residues used alone has a negative effect on all zootechnical parameters evaluated. Indeed, the amendment of wheat bran has a significant positive impact on these parameters. Citrus and tomato were the most toxic diets showing a mortality rate of 92 and 98 %, respectively. The most efficient diets werethe mixture of citrus residues andwheat branfollowed by the mixture of potato residues and wheat bran and the mixture ofpepper residues and wheat bran. Fed substrate had no impact on conversion rate.