the effect of irrigation interval on reproduction traits of root-knot nematode(meloidogyne javanica) in two navy bean(phaseolus vulgaris )varieties

root-knot nemaode which causes extensive damage to legumes and cerealshas beenreported in many countries. the nematods has been observed on legumes, roots in manyregions of the world, causing swollen root and yield reduction. in order to evaluate the effect ofirrigation interval on reproductive traits of root-knot nematode, and the damage inflicteduponnavy bean, a study was conducted in 2011 in the research greenhouses of shiraz islamic azaduniversity. thefactorial experiment was arranged in an rcb design of three replications.three factors, including- variety at two levels; irrigation interval at three levels, andinfestationat two levels were considered. nematode inoculation was conducted at the seedlingstage of navy bean by a number of 2000 eggs plus second stage juveniles per kg of soil in eachpot. plant growth and nematode reproduction trends were started to be assessed two monthsfollowing inoculation. on the basis of the recorded results the effect of irrigation interval onthe whole traits, related to nematode, was significant at a 1% level of probability. the highestand the lowest number of galls per root, egg mass per root, nematode final population as wellas reproduction traits were recorded for the 48 and 96 hour irrigation intervals respectively.the two irrigation treatments significantly differed at 5% level as regards the four tested traits.the results also revealed that varieties at different irrigation intervals responded differently tonematode damage. as much as the soil moisture content was less, the nematode was moredisabled and plants grew with more vigor. so, maybe one can retard the growth of nematodesby management of irrigation interval especially when the probability of damage of thenematode is high, although the economic performance of the crop should also be put intoconsideration.