Observations on the biology of chrysanthemum eelworm Aphelenchoides ritzema‐bosi (Schwartz) Steiner in florists' chrysanthemum

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Abstract
SUMMARY: The chrysanthemum eelworm moved in sand and in a clay soil at much the same rate as other eelworm species so far studied. Leaf washing and soil examination in infested chrysanthemum plots showed that the eelworm never spread laterally through the soil or from leaf to leaf more than to the second row of plants from the source of infestation, a maximum distance of about 30 in. At Rothamsted and in the National Chrysanthemum Society's variety trial the number of infested varieties increased greatly in September, during periods of heavy mists. Experiments with isolated leaves, artificially infested and kept under either dry or humid conditions suggested that eelworms were more active in humid conditions. They invaded isolated leaves within 15–30 min. In pot experiments, eelworms added to soil invaded chrysanthemum plants inducing symptoms in 18 days: 26 days after such inoculations no eelworms could be detected in the soil. Few eelworms persisted in fallow soil in pots after 32 days. No eelworms were found after the end of November in soil taken from an infested field plot at intervals between August 1959 to January 1960. Attempts to infest plants with eelworms from stored soil taken from highly infested plots failed. Examination of stools during the winter showed that many eelworms were present in the green tissues. It is concluded that infestation from eelworms which persist over the winter in soil is slight and that the main source of the pest is the chrysanthemum stool.
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