Plant parasitic nematode associated with sweet potato in Nigeria

Abstract

Survey of plant parasitic nematodes were carried out in some sweet potato growing areas of Nigeria. The research was design to assess the plant parasitic nematode pests of sweet potato in sweet potato growing areas in Nigeria. Soil samples and sweet potato tubers were randomly sampled from selected farm sites in Oyo, Osun, Kaduna, Kwara, Kogi, Abia, Cross Rivers, Benue, Taraba and Plateau States of Nigeria. Plant parasitic nematodes were extracted from soil and sweet potato tubers following standard methods and identification key for agriculturally important plant-parasitic nematodes was used for the nematode identification. Nematodes were extracted and identified in the laboratory. The plant parasitic nematodes identified in the soil samples and sweet potato tuber were root knot nematode Meloidogyne incognita, reniform nematode Rotylenchulus reniformis, lesion nematode Pratylenchus species, brown ring nematode Ditylenchus destructor and D. dipsaci, stubby root nematode Paratrichodorus spp. and dry rot nematode Scutellonema bradys. Plant parasitic nematodes infected sweet potato tubers have unappealing appearances, cracks, internal lesions and dry rot.