Abstract
A microplot experiment was conducted to determine application interval of fermented crude extracts of wild watermelon (Cucumis africanus) fruit for optimum growth of tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) plants and suppression of the southern root-knot (Meloidogyne incognita) nematode. Four-week-old tomato cultivar ‘Floradade’ seedlings were each inoculated with 5000 second-stage juveniles of M. incognita race 2 with 3% dilution of fermented crude extracts applied through drip irrigation at 1, 2, 3 and 4 times per 30-day month. At 56 days after the treatment, plant variables and increasing application frequencies had quadratic relationships, with the model explaining 63–99% total treatment variation in variables. Mean integrated optimum application frequency was 2.4 weeks, which translated to an optimum 17-day application interval. At this interval, final nematode population densities were low. In conclusion, at 3% dilution fermented crude extracts from C. africanus fruit could be applied at 17-day interval for interruption of the nematode life cycle and improvement of tomato plant growth.
Published Version
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