Nematodes associated with blackberry in arkansas

A survey of the nematodes in blackberry (Rubus sp.) rhizospheres was conducted in Arkansas from 1986 to 1989. The state was divided arbitrarily into four quadrants. A total of 134 soil samples was collected, and 150-cm 3 subsamples were assayed for nematodes. Twenty-one species of plant-parasitic nematodes in 11 genera were extracted from the samples. There were differences (P = 0.05) among quadrants of the state in percentage occurrence of the nematodes and in population densities in samples. Xiphinema americanum, Helicotylenchus spp. (H. paraplatyurus, H. platyurus, and H. pseudorobustus), and Pratylenchus spp. (P. vulnus and P. zeae) were found in all quadrants. Xiphinema americanum population density was near 1,000 per 150 cm(3) soil in soil samples from two locations. Other nematodes found in one or more quadrants were Criconemella spp. (C. axeste, C. curvata, C. denoudeni, C. ornata, C. sphaerocephala, and C. xenoplax), Paratrichodorus minor, Tylenchorhynchus claytoni, Hirschmanniella oryzae, Hoplolaimus magnistylus, Scutellonema bradys, and undescribed species of Criconema, Tylenchulus, Xiphinema, and Meloidogyne. Criconemella sphaerocephala and Helicotylenchus platyurus are reported from Arkansas for the first time. Helicotylenchus paraplatyurus is reported from the United States for the first time.