Effects of three microbial broth cultures and an organic amendment on growth and populations of free living and plant-parasitic nematodes on banana

Abstract

The effect of 24 treatment combinations of cultures of Streptomyces costaricanus sp. nov. (ATCC55274), Bacillus thuringiensis (ATCC55273) and a strain of Paecilomyces marquandii, nematicide (cadusaphos), and/or wheat mash on growth and response of potted banana plants (Musa AAA) and populations of Radopholus similis, Helicotylenchus multicinctus and free living nematodes were studied in Rio Frio, Costa Rica. The best plant responses (height, leaf numbers, healthy root weight), lowest numbers of plant parasitic nematodes and highest numbers of free living nematodes were observed for treatments containing wheat as a component. Two treatments, viz. wheat + Streptomyces costaricanus (200-ml culture) and wheat + P. marquandii (200-ml culture), gave the overall best results. Numbers of free living nematodes increased up to 1500-fold only for treatments containing wheat. Significant positive correlations existed between numbers of free living nematodes and shoot weight, healthy root biomass, plant height, and leaf numbers. Non-wheat treatments, including nematicide only, gave the poorest responses in general. Observations of nematodes sampled 50 days following planting in wheat-containing treatments showed most of the free-living nematodes (≈ 90%) to be infected by nematophagous fungi (species not recorded). The results show that an organic amendment to soil, with or without a microbial component, can be an effective inducer of processes that regulate plant-parasitic nematode populations in soil.