Plant-parasitic nematode communities associated with Moringa tree (Moringa oleifera Lam.) in western Niger

Abstract

Moringa (Moringa oleifera Lam) is a crop that is becoming more and more important in Niger, but very little attention has been devoted to its pest problems. Nematode fauna survey was undertaken in three important Moringa producing sites in western Niger. Soil and roots samples were taken from the plant’s rhizosphere at 20-30-cm deep. Nematological analysis of these samples revealed the presence of 11 genera of plant-parasitic nematodes among which the most frequent and abundant were Meloidogyne spp., Helicotylenchus spp. and Hoplolaimus spp. The average prominence values of these three nematodes were 236.69, 105.25 and 97.93, respectively. In roots, Meloidogyne spp. alone represented up to 90% of the plant-parasitic nematode communities. Its average prominent value was 591.46.