Influence of Temperature on the Virulence of Two Races of Meloidogyne chitwoodi on Wheat and Barley

Abstract

Races of the Columbia root-knot nematode, Meloidogyne chitzooodi, from Idaho (R1) and Utah (R2) suppressed (P 0.05) tillering of Dusty winter wheat, Fielder spring wheat, Luther winter barley, and Steptoe spring barley at 15-30 C. Nematode inoculum density was negatively correlated with tillering (r = -0.79). Inoculum densities of both nematode races were negatively correlated with heads per plant (r = -0.83), head length (r = -0.87), and head dry weight (r = 0.73) of Fielder spring wheat and Steptoe spring barley at all temperatures; the greatest growth restrictions occurred at Pi 20 eggs/cm³ soil. Both nematode races were most damaging at 25-30 C. Fielder spring wheat and Steptoe spring barley inoculated with R2 produced fewer heads than R1 when inoculated at 15 C, whereas the same cultivars inoculated with R1 produced fewer heads than R2 at 30 C. No differences were observed between root growth of winter and spring wheat or between winter and spring barley. Nematode reproduction was positively correlated to temperature (r = 0.87) and negatively correlated with inoculum density (r = -0.86). Reproductive rates were greatest with Pi = 2 eggs/cm³ soil at 25 C and lowest with Pi = 20 eggs/cm³ soil at 15 C for both nematode races. Key words: barley, Columbia root-knot nematode, damage potential, nematode, plant growth, reproductive index, root-gall rating, susceptibility, temperature, tillering, wheat.