Management strategies for Heterodera goettingiana in a vegetable cropping system in Italy

Hele rodera goeuingiana damages leguminous crops in Europe and the Mediterranean Basin. Il is managed by nematicides and crop rotation. The tolerance level for most hosts is less than one egg/g soil, but is higher for vetch (2 eggs/g soil). Conventional economic thresholds varied with crop value and nematicide cost. For DD nematicide at current priees, threshold levels were 8 and 2.5 eggs/g soil for peas grown by family farms and commercial farms, respectively. The optimal application rate of DD nematicide increased with initial population level; it was greater at any population level for commercial farms than for family farms. Optimal crop rotation strategies varied with crop value and initial nematode population level. Generally, a host crop can be profitably grown one year in three; at low initial population levels, IWO host crops can be grown in three years.