Fungi recovered from root-knot nematodes infecting vegetables under protected cultivation

Abstract

A survey was conducted in root-knot nematode-infested plastic houses to determine the diversity and frequency of occurrence of fungi associated with the nematode. The relationships between percentage fungal parasitism and physicochemical properties of soil were also investigated. Fifty-nine plastic houses were sampled in southeastern Spain, 42 treated with nematicides and 17 left untreated. Eleven fungal genera and unidentified fungi were isolated from nematode eggs or juveniles. Fungal parasitism occurred more frequently in untreated (82.4%) than treated (50%) soils. The species richness in untreated soils ranged from 0 to 5, the Shannon–Wiener diversity index (a measurement of how many different fungi there are in site taking into account how evenly they are distributed among the site) from 0 to 2.01, and the evenness index from 0.46 to 0.99. In treated soils, species richness ranged from 0 to 4, the Shannon–Wiener diversity index from 0 to 1.61, and the evenness index from 0.81 to 1. Of the sites with nematophagous fungi, Arthrobotrys dactyloides (34%), Cylindrocarpon sp., Neosartoria hiratsukae (17%), and Fusarium solani (14%) were the fungi most frequently found. Physicochemical properties of soil were similar in nematicide treated and untreated soils. Percent fungal parasitism in untreated soils correlated positively with lime, silt and carbonate content of soil.