Weed Science (1999) 47, 201-207
Jill Schroeder, Stephen H. Thomas and Leigh W. Murray (1999)
Yellow (Cyperus esculentus) and purple nutsedge (Cyperus rotundus) are not injured by increasing root-knot nematode (Meloidogyne incognita) population density
Weed Science 47 (2), 201-207
Abstract: Greenhouse studies in 1995 and 1996 examined the response of yellow and purple nutsedge to inoculation with increasing densities of southern root-knot nematodes. Yellow and purple nutsedge root and shoot weight, numbers of leaves and tubers produced, and tuber weight were unaffected across 17 nematode inoculum densities that ranged from 0 to 20,000 eggs per 15-cm pot, four times the maximum nematode density recorded under field conditions in New Mexico. Hence, yellow and purple nutsedge do not exhibit a classic threshold response to root-knot nematodes. Moreover, the results suggest that the relationship between these nematodes and perennial nutsedges is an example of a positive biological interaction. The relationship between root-knot nematodes and purple nutsedge appears to be one of commensalism, because while the nematodes reproduced effectively, purple nutsedge reproduction was not related to final nematode populations. The relationship between yellow nutsedge and root-knot nematodes appears to be a mutually beneficial one, because yellow nutsedge tuber number and weight and root weight increased as final nematode populations increased. However, while both nutsedges were unaffected in the absence of the association, root-knot nematodes cannot survive without a host plant.
(The abstract is excluded from the Creative Commons licence and has been copied with permission by the publisher.)
Database assignments for author(s): Jill Schroeder, Stephen H. Thomas
Research topic(s) for pests/diseases/weeds:
environment - cropping system/rotation
Pest and/or beneficial records:
| Beneficial | Pest/Disease/Weed | Crop/Product | Country | Quarant.
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Meloidogyne incognita | U.S.A. (SW) | |||
| Cyperus rotundus (weed) | U.S.A. (SW) | |||
| Cyperus esculentus (weed) | U.S.A. (SW) |
