SOIL NEMATODES IN NEW ZEALAND PASTURES

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Abstract
Monthly sampling carried out over 13 mo. showed a strong correlation between soil moisture falling below wilting point and decline in total nematode abundance; annual mean populations ranged 730,000-4,890,000/m2 for 0-10 cm soil depth. At 6 sites the vertical distribution of nematodes in 0-30 cm soil was strongly correlated with both soil organic C and Truog P; at 4 sites 75% of the nematodes were recovered from the upper 5 cm. Management of permanent pasture may lead to increases in populations of nematodes including Heterodera and Pratylenchus; buildup of Pratylenchus was correlated with lack of pasture response despite a 4-fold increase in phosphate application. Cultivating and cropping an old pasture reduce damaging nematode populations. In the field, herbage dry matter responses to the chemical control of the clover root nematodes Heterodera trifolii and Meloidogyne hapla, or control of H. trifolii where it occurs alone, is about 10%. In pot trials H. trifolii and M. hapla not only reduce the rate of herbage production but also its N content.

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