Effect of salinity and temperature on reproduction and egg hatching of Meloidogyne incognita in tomato

Abstract

Temperature is an important factor in determining the geographical distribution of root-knot nematodes (Meloidogyne spp.), perhaps more so than plants or soil (De Guiran and Ritter, 1979; Ferris and Van Gundy, 1979). Salinity is a problem in some marginal agricultural land but has not been investigated on plant parasitic nematode reproduction, egg hatching and invasion of roots. This work examines the effect of salinity (salt type and concentration) on rate of reproduction of Meloidogyne incognita (Kofoid et White) Chitw. under different temperatures; and the effect of salinity on cgg viability, egg hatch and infectivity of juveniles.