Resistance as a Tactic for Management of Meloidogyne incognita on Cotton in North Carolina.

Selected cotton cultivars were evaluated for resistance to the southern root-knot nematode, Meloidogyne incognita, in greenhouse and field experiments. Cotton cultivars LA 887, Auburn 634, and NemX cotton were highly resistant to three North Carolina populations of root-knot nematode in greenhouse experiments compared to susceptible cultivars. The relative susceptibility of cultivars tested in the greenhouse from most to least susceptible were Deltapine 16 > Deltapine 50 > LA 887 or NemX > Auburn 634. The yields of resistant and susceptible cotton cultivars were increased by fumigation in fields infested with root-knot nematode. Reproduction of M. incognita in field plots on NemX, Paymaster H 1560, and Stoneville LA 887 was less than on susceptible cultivars. Diminished reproduction of the nematode on resistant cultivars may reduce the need for nematode control tactics in subsequent years.