Natural Degradable Polyhydroxyalkanoates as the Basis for Creation of Prolonged and Targeted Pesticides to Protect Cultivated Plants from Weeds and Pathogens

Abstract

The present chapter is a synthesis of the authors’ data on the design and use of extended-release formulations of herbicides and fungicides embedded in a degradable matrix of polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA). The structure and physicochemical properties of the experimental formulations and the kinetics of their degradation in soil and pesticide release have been reported. The favorable effects of the application of the experimental pesticide formulations in laboratory soil ecosystems in wheat plant communities infected with Fusarium plant pathogen and weeds have been described.