Crop Rotation Studies with Velvetbean (Mucuna deeringiana) for the Management of Meloidogyne spp.

Results from a greenhouse experiment at Cabrils, Spain, with two velvetbean (Mucuna deeringiana) accessions (Florida and Mozambique) growing in sterilized sandy loam and inoculated with Meloidogyne arenaria race 2, M. incognita race 1, and M. javanica revealed that the legume was not a host for these nematodes. In contrast, roots of 'Clemson Spineless' okra (Hibiscus esculentum), 'Summer Crookneck' squash (Cucurbita pepo), and 'Davis' soybean (Glycine max) were galled by all three root-knot nematodes. Greenhouse experiments at Auburn, Alabama, using soils infested with Heterodera glycines (race 14) + M. incognita or with H. glycines + M. arenaria (race 2) showed that, in contrast to Davis soybean, a Mexican and the Florida velvetbean accessions were not hosts for the nematodes. An experiment with 'Florunner' peanut (Arachis hypogaea) and the Florida velvetbean in a field infested with M. arenaria (race 1), near Headland, Alabama, showed that significant juvenile populations of the nematode at peanut harvest time were present only in plots with peanut. A microplot rotation experiment demonstrated that 'Black Beauty' eggplant (Solanum melongena) following the Florida velvetbean had heavier shoots and lower numbers of M. arenaria juveniles in the roots and in the soil than eggplant after Summer Crookneck squash or Davis soybean.