Susceptibility Evaluation of Some Sugar Beet Cultivars for the Sugar Beet Cyst Nematode, Heterodera schachtii in Syria

Abstract

The cyst nematode Heterodera schachtii Schmidt is one of the most dangerous agricultural pest to sugar beet (beta vulgaris), using resistant cultivars is one of the control methods, a greenhouse pots experiment was carried out during the season 2013/2014 to evaluate the susceptibility and/or resistance of 14 sugar beet cultivars recommended by the Syrian Ministry of Agriculture, regarding sugar beet cyst nematode, H. schachtii., most of them are monoembroyonic :Dita, Ghazira GA, Colombia, Semper, Giada, Vero, Sophia, Franca,  Rifle, Rizor, and the others are  polyembroyonic: Mezanopoly A ,Reda, ,Polybelga,  SM1390.  At the end of the experiment, RF (reproduction factor) of the nematode were calculated for every cultivar, the results showed that all of the tested cultivars were susceptible to infection by different degrees, and there is  direct correlation between reproduction factor of the nematode and the susceptibility to infection, the cultivar Colombia )RF=0.75( was with the lowest susceptibility while the cv. Rizor (RF=21.78) was the most susceptible one.