INTEGRATION OF SOLAR-HEATING AND SOIL-AMENDMENT, AN EFFECTIVE CONTROL MEASURE AGAINST ROOT-KNOT NEMATODES IN CUCUMBER FIELDS

The potential of soil solarization to control root-knot nematodes, Meloidgyne javanica and M. incognita, along with soil amendment (cow dung 40 t/ha) alone and/or in integration was studied in cucumber fields, during the hottest periods, i.e. July and August, for about five weeks in the two consecutive years. The temperature in the solarized soils was 10°C (±1) higher in comparison to non-solarized soils at 5 cm depth and reduced in the respective depths. The moisture content of the soil was preserved for more than 80% in the solarized soils. Bioassay of cucumber roots indicated that soil solarization alone could reduce the incidence of root-knot nematodes by 52.56%, and soil-amendment by 56%, whereas the integration of soil-solarization and soil-amendment could effectively reduce the nematode incidence by 83%. The total parasitic population, Aphelenchoides, Helicotylenchus, Heterodera, Paratylenchus and Tylenclus, was reduced up to 71, 69 and 79% in the respective treatments. The total free-living nematode population, Aphelenchus, Cephalobus and Rhabditis, was increased only in soil-amendment and integration treatments of soil-amendment and soil-solarization to 30 and 53% respectively.