FREQUENCIES AND POPULATION DENSITIES OF THE MAJOR PHYTONEMATODES ASSOCIATED WITH BANANA IN THE STATE OF ALAGOAS, BRAZIL [FREQUÊNCIAS E DENSIDADES POPULACIONAIS DOS PRINCIPAIS FITONEMATOIDES ASSOCIADOS À BANANEIRA NO ESTADO DE ALAGOAS, BRASIL]
Keywords:
Helicotylenchus spp., Meloidogyne spp., Musa spp., nematodes, Pratylenchus spp., Radopholus similisAbstract
Banana (Musa spp.) is one of the most cultivated and consumed fruits in the tropics. The low productivity and lowquality of the Brazilian bananas are largely due to disease problems, among which are nematodes. In Alagoas, there isa lack of information on the nematodes species affecting the banana crop. The objectives of this study were to updatethe information on the occurrence of plant-parasitic nematodes in some of the banana producing areas in Alagoas state,to provide quantitative information on the frequencies and population densities of these parasites, and to identify thenematode species associated with the banana crop. The study was carried out from April 2011 to January 2012. Fortytwosoil and roots samples were collected from banana orchards planted with cultivars Prata, Pacovan, and Terra in 13municipalities of Alagoas state. Nematodes were extracted from roots and soil samples using the maceration-centrifugalflotation and the centrifugal-flotation methods, respectively. The frequencies of the nematodes species extracted fromthe roots and soil samples were as follows: Helicotylenchus spp., 95% and 98%; Meloidogyne spp., 79% and 81%;Pratylenchus spp., 36% and 26%; and Radopholus similis, 38% and 21%; respectively. On average, Helicotylenchus spp.was most abundant with 2,359/ 50 g root, followed by R. similis: 1,359, Meloidogyne spp.: 810, and Pratylenchus spp.:682. These high population densities show the need for research aimed at the management of plant-parasitic nematodesof banana in Alagoas state.Downloads
Published
2013-12-01
Issue
Section
ELECTRONIC ARTICLE/ARTICULO ELECTRONICO