PLANT-PARASITIC NEMATODES ASSOCIATED WITH COMMON HORTICULTURAL WEEDS

Abstract

Weed is plant species that interfere with cultivated crops, including horticultural crops. Weeds are competing with crops for nutrients, light, water, and other growth factors and ultimately reduce the crop yield. Weeds can be the alternative hosts for various plant pathogens (fungi, bacteria, viruses, and nematodes). This study aimed to observe the species of weeds and the genera of nematodes associated with them on horticultural crops (tomatoes, celeries, carrots, and carrot seedlings) found in the experimental garden of IPB University, Indonesia. Weeds collected from the horticultural land were identified based on their species. Nematodes associated with weeds were extracted and identified. Nematode extraction from the weed rhizosphere was performed following the floating-centrifugation method, whereas nematode extraction from weed roots was performed using the misting method. Weed species and nematode genera, as well as the number of nematodes, were obtained and processed into figures, tables, and graphs. Based on the study results, there were seven types of weeds on tomatoes, celeries, carrots, and carrot seedlings land. The seven weeds found were Ageratum conyzoides, Ageratum houstonianum, Portulaca oleracea, Eleusine indica, Amaranthus spinosus, Borreria alata, and Borreria laevis. In weed rhizospheres, it was also found seven genera of nematodes, namely Meloidogyne, Helicotylenchus, Pratylenchus, Rotylenchulus, Hoplolaimus, Criconemoides, and Scutellonema. In 100 ml of weed rhizosphere, the most number of nematodes were mainly found on weeds grown among celeries (105), followed by tomatoes (96), carrots (87), and carrot seedlings (58). Furthermore, based on the extraction result of 10 g weed roots to determine the nematode population, A. conyzoides weed root contained 165 nematodes/100 g roots, followed by B. laevis (146), A. spinosus (143), P. oleracea (122), A. houstonianum (121), B. alata (113), and E. indica (101). This study provides new information on the species of weeds growing on the horticultural land (tomatoes, celeries, carrots, and carrot seedlings) and plant-parasitic nematodes associated with them.