Cover crops for reniform nematode suppression in cotton: greenhouse and field evaluations

Two greenhouse and one field experiment were carried out to evaluate the reaction of cover crops to reniform nematode, Rotylenchulus reniformis, and their effect on nematode populations in a naturally infested soil (2,359 nematodes/200cm(3)) and on cotton yield. Oil radish (Rophanus sativus), Mulato grass (Brachiaria ruziziensis x B. brizantha), forage sorghum (Sorghum bicolor), tef (Eragrostis tef), foxtail millet (Setaria italica), Algerian (Avena byzantina) and black (A. strigosa) oats, pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum), and finger millet (Eleusine coracana) were determined to be poor hosts for R. reniformis in greenhouse experiments. Grain amaranth (Amaranthus cruentus) and quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa) were good hosts to R. reniformis. In the field, lower nematode densities were observed after Mulato grass, oil radish and forage sorghum. Higher cotton fiber yields were obtained from plots cultivated with Mulato grass or sorghum during the winter compared to clean fallow. Cotton yield was inversely correlated with both reproduction factor (p < 0.05) of the nematode on the winter cover crops and population of R. rrniformis at cotton planting (p < 0.01).