Possible use of weeds as soil amendment for the management of root-knot and stunt nematodes attacking eggplant

Abstract

Organic soil amendments in the form of chopped shoots of some weeds gave significant reductions in the population build-up of the root-knot nematode Meloidogyne incognita and the stunt nematode Tylenchorhynchus brassicae on a strong host, eggplant cv. ‘Pusa Purple Long’. The most effective was soil treated with Solanum xanthocaroum followed by Calotropis procera, Datura metel, Croton bonplandianum and Argemone mexicana. These treatments also inhibited significantly root galling. The plant growth of eggplant was also improved by the amendments; however C. bonplandianum showed some phytotoxicity at higher dosage.