The relationship between commercial cotton cultivars with varying Meloidogyne incognita resistance genes and yield

Evaluation of Meloidogyne Incognita and Rotylenchulus Reniformis Nematode-resistant Cotton Cultivars with Supplemental Corteva Agriscience Nematicides

Meloidogyne incognita- and Rotylenchulus reniformis-resistant new cotton cultivars have recently become available, giving growers a new option in nematode management. The objectives of this study were: (i) to determine the yield potential of the new cultivars PHY 360 W3FE (M. incognita-resistant) and PHY 332 W3FE (R. reniformis-resistant) in nematode-infested fields and (ii) to evaluate the effects of combining the nematicides Reklemel (fluazaindolizine), Vydate C-LV (oxamyl), and the seed treatment BIOST Nematicide 100 (heat killed Burkholderia rinojenses and its non-living spent fermentation media) with resistant cotton cultivars on nematode population levels and lint yield. Field experiments in 2020 and 2021 indicated M. incognita population levels were 73% lower on PHY 360 W3FE (R) and 80% lower for R. reniformis on the PHY 332 W3FE (R) at 40 days after planting. Nematode eggs per gram of root were further reduced an average of 86% after the addition of Reklemel and Vydate C-LV when averaging both cultivars over the two years. Tests with BIOST Nematicide 100 + Reklemel + Vydate C-LV (0.56 + 2.5 L/ha) in both M. incognita and R. reniformis fields produced higher lint yields. Overall, planting PHY 360 W3FE (R) and PHY 332 W3FE (R) improved yields an average of 364 kg/ha while limiting nematode population increases. The addition of the nematicides further increased yields 152 kg/ha of the nematode-resistant cultivars.

Meta-Analysis of the Field Efficacy of Seed- and Soil-Applied Nematicides on Meloidogyne incognita and Rotylenchulus reniformis Across the U.S. Cotton Belt

Meta-analysis was used to compare yield protection and nematode suppression provided by two seed-applied and two soil-applied nematicides against Meloidogyne incognita and Rotylenchulus reniformis on cotton across 3 years and several trial locations in the U.S. Cotton Belt. Nematicides consisted of thiodicarb- and fluopyram-treated seed, aldicarb and fluopyram applied in furrow, and combinations of the seed treatments and soil-applied fluopyram. The nematicides had no effect on nematode reproduction or root infection but had a significant impact on seed cotton yield response ([Formula: see text]), with an average increase of 176 and 197 kg/ha relative to the nontreated control in M. incognita and R. reniformis infested fields, respectively. However, because of significant variation in yield protection and nematode suppression by nematicides, five or six moderator variables (cultivar resistance [M. incognita only], nematode infestation level, nematicide treatment, application method, trial location, and growing season) were used depending on nematode species. In M. incognita-infested fields, greater yield protection was observed with nematicides applied in furrow and with seed-applied + in-furrow than with solo seed-applied nematicide applications. Most notable of these in-furrow nematicides were aldicarb and fluopyram (>131 g/ha) with or without a seed-applied nematicide compared with thiodicarb. In R. reniformis-infested fields, moderator variables provided no further explanation of the variation in yield response produced by nematicides. Furthermore, moderator variables provided little explanation of the variation in nematode suppression by nematicides in M. incognita- and R. reniformis-infested fields. The limited explanation by the moderator variables on the field efficacy of nematicides in M. incognita- and R. reniformis-infested fields demonstrates the difficulty of managing these pathogens with nonfumigant nematicides across the U.S. Cotton Belt.

Effects of Fusarium wilt on Cotton Cultivars with and Without Meloidogyne incognita Resistance in Fields

Cotton (Gossypium hirsutum) cultivar trials were conducted in four fields (6 trials total) with Meloidogyne incognita (Mi)/Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. vasinfectum (Fov) from 2019 to 2021. Cotton cultivars were divided into groups based on company/Mi resistance: S = susceptible to Mi; R-FM, R-DP, and R-PHY = resistance to Mi in FiberMax®, Deltapine®, and Phytogen® cultivars, respectively; ST 4946GLB2 (moderate resistance to Mi and observed field tolerance to Fov); and ST 5600B2XF (resistance to Mi). The S and R-FM groups had the highest transformed Mi densities LOG10(Mi + 1) (LMi = 3.22 and 3.01, respectively), while R-DP and R-PHY had the lowest LMi (2.21 and 1.85, respectively). Plant mortality (%) was higher for R-DP (28.1%) than for all other groups except ST 5600B2XF (24.8%). Mi-susceptible cultivars averaged 23.3% mortality. Relative yield (0-1 scale) was higher for ST 4946GLB2 (0.706) and R-PHY (0.635) than for R-DP (0.530), ST 5600B2XF (0.578), and S (0.491). All groups except R-DP averaged higher relative yield than the susceptible cultivars. ST 4946GLB2 had the lowest mortality (16.5%) and highest relative yield, while R-DP cultivars had the highest mortality and no difference in relative yield from the Mi-susceptible cultivars. The group of R-DP cultivars had excellent Mi resistance but were susceptible to Fov. No cultivars were identified with high resistance to Fov.