Effect of organic farming on plant parasitic nematodes infesting banana cv. Karpuravalli.

Abstract

An experiment was carried out during 2001-02 at Podavur, Trichy, Tamil Nadu, India to investigate the influence of locally available organic amendments, such as distillery sludge, vermicompost, neem cake and poultry manure, on the populations of major parasitic nematodes infesting banana cv. Karpuravalli. The populations of root-lesion nematode (Pratylenchus coffeae), spiral nematode (Helicotylenchus multicinctus), root-knot nematode (Meloidogyne incognita) and cyst nematode (Heterodera oryzicola) were significantly lower in plants that received distillery sludge at 2.5 kg along with vermicompost at 1 kg, neem cake at 1 kg and poultry manure at 2.5 kg/plant at 3, 5 and 7 months after planting, compared with the untreated control. Based on individual applications, neem cake at 2 kg/plant at 3, 5 and 7 months after planting had profound lethal effect on the nematodes, and was at par with distillery sludge alone at kg/plant at monthly interval from 3 to 7 months after planting. Application of poultry manure at 5 kg resulted in the same degree of reduction in nematode populations. Among the organic amendments, vermicompost at 2 kg/plant was the least effective in reducing the nematode populations both in the soil and roots.