Several polyethylene plastics were evaluated as potential materials for disinfesting small volumes of soil containing nematodes. Bursaphelenchus seani, cultured on the fungus Monilinia fructicola in petri dishes, was used to bioassay the survival and reproductive capability of nematodes buried 7.5 cm deep in Margate fine sand (soil moisture = 4.9%). The soil was exposed to sunlight for 6 days i...

Cultural practices (CPs) can be harnessed for the management of foliar and soilborne diseases by creating an environment which is favorable for the crop and unfavorable for the pathogen. Certain CPs, e.g. flooding and sanitation, are used mainly for pest control while others, e.g. irrigation, can be used for both crop management and pest control. Some CPs, e.g. deep plowing, crop rotation, flam...

Soil-borne diseases are a significant cause of reduction in crop yield. Alternative management soils can enhance the natural disease-controlling organisms soil. This study explores impact alternative production methods on primary soybean disease, charcoal rot, caused by fungus Macrophomina phaseolina. Treatments that could potentially or control disease were implemented, and soil tests conducte...

A variety of non-chemical alternatives to methyl bromide (MB) fumigation of soil for horticultural crop production have been researched in the USA. Non-chemical alternatives are highly desirable but difficult to implement to reproduce the benefits normally obtained by preplant fumigation of soil in strawberry production. Production of pathogen-free, high-quality planting materials using steam a...