Thirty-seven cultivars and experimental lines of tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum) were evaluated for their reaction to a Costa Rican and a Panamanian population of Meloidogyne incognita under greenhouse conditions. The majority of the materials tested also have tolerance or resistance to bacterial wilt caused by Pseudomonas solanacearum. Much of the same germplasm was tested in both countries. Of the 26 entries evaluated in Costa Rica 'Carnival' and 'Zenith' were resistant to the nematode. The others exhibited varying degrees of susceptibility. All 22 entries tested in Panama were highly susceptible to the Panamanian population of M. incognita. Galling indices and final nematode populations per plant were high in all cases. The entries that were resistant to the nematode in Costa Rica require additional evaluation under field conditions in bacteria-infested soils. Additional screening of tomato germplasm for resistance to M. incognita is required in Panama.
