Responses of Some Common Cruciferae to Root-knot Nematodes.

Ten cultivated plants of the family Cruciferae were evaluated for susceptibility to Meloidogyne arenaria race 1, M. incognita races 1 and 3, and M. javanica in a series of four separate greenhouse tests. After 62-64 days, or 1,032-1,072 degree days (10 C base), several of the crops evaluated showed moderate to severe levels of galling (> 3.0 on 0-5 scale) and moderate numbers of egg masses (>2.0 on 0-5 scale) in response to each of the nematode species and races. Among the plants tested, collard (Brassica oleracea var. acephala) cv. Georgia Southern was the least susceptible (fewest galls and egg masses) to each of the four nematode isolates. Similar low levels of infection were obtained with broccoli (B. oleracea var. botrytis) cv. De Cicco in response to M. incognita race 1 and M. arenaria. Numbers of second-stage juveniles hatched from eggs per root system were variable in the test with M. arenaria, but lowest on collard for each of the other nematodes. Some commonly grown crucifers are hosts to several different species and races of Meloidogyne, which should be considered if these crops are included in cropping systems.