Skip to main content
ARS Home » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #115637
Title: COMPARATIVE VERTICAL DISTRIBUTION OF ROTYLENCHULUS RENIFORMIS IN SOIL IN COTTON PRODUCTION IN ARKANSAS

Author
item Robinson, Arin
item Bridges, Alan
item COOK, CHARLES - NOVARTIS SEEDS, INC.
item KIRKPATRICK, T. - ARKANSAS SW REC
item MCGAWLEY, E. - LOUISIANA STATE UNIV.
item OVERSTREET, C. - LOUISIANA COOP. EXT. SVC.
item PADGETT, B.

Submitted to: Nematropica
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 3/2/2000
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: There are many kinds of microscopic worms called nematodes that feed on the roots of cotton and other crops, debilitating the plants and markedly decreasing yields. The direct losses to U.S. cotton farmers caused by nematodes were estimated by the Cotton Disease Council in 1999 to exceed $300,000,000. When a certain kind of nematode called the reniform nematode eis present in a cotton field, the success of killing nematodes and preventing yield losses by applying a nematicide has been erratic, and available information suggests that in some cases reniform nematodes may occur too deeply to be detected by the standardized soil sampling procedures employed to extract nematodes in the top foot or so of soil. A preliminary study, therefore, was conducted to examine the depth-wise distribution of the reniform nematode down to 105 cm (3'6") on 10 infested farms in Texas, Louisiana, and Arkansas. In half of the fields, most nematodes were found below 30 cm (1') and large numbers were more than 90 cm (3') deep, indicating that the reniform nematode frequently occurs much deeper than other nematodes within the soil in cotton fields. Nematode distribution did not appear directly related to soil texture or moisture but may be related to root growth patterns. This information is an important step toward understanding how to reliably detect and treat damaging infestations of the reniform nematode in cotton.