Vol. 39 No. 1 (2025)
Articles

Preliminary evaluation of nematode community responses to ground covers in jute leaf cultivation

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  • B. Waldo,
  • C.G. Arlotta,
  • M.L. Richardson
B. Waldo
Mycology and Nematology Genetic Diversity and Biology Laboratory, USDA, ARS, Northeast Area, 10300 Baltimore Ave, Beltsville, MD 20705, Maryland, USA.
C.G. Arlotta
Center for Urban Research, Engagement and Scholarship, University of the District of Columbia, Washington DC 20008, USA.
M.L. Richardson
Center for Urban Research, Engagement and Scholarship, University of the District of Columbia, Washington DC 20008, USA.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.36253/ahsc-16960
Categories

Published 2025-05-28

Keywords

  • Compost,
  • ethnic crop,
  • landscape fabric,
  • mulch,
  • straw,
  • wood chips
    • ...More
    Less

How to Cite

Waldo, B., Arlotta, C. G., & Richardson , M. (2025). Preliminary evaluation of nematode community responses to ground covers in jute leaf cultivation. Advances in Horticultural Science, 39(1), 11–20. https://doi.org/10.36253/ahsc-16960

Copyright (c) 2025 Benjamin Waldo, Caitlin Arlotta, Matthew Richardson

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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

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Abstract

Jute leaf (Corchorus olitorius) is an emerging ethnic crop in the Mid-Atlantic United States. No information is available on nematode associations and nematode community responses to jute leaf grown with ground cover. We conducted a preliminary field study in the summer of 2023 in Beltsville, Maryland to evaluate the responses of endemic nematode communities to three cultivars of jute leaf (Firebird, Molokhia, and USDA PI 404029) and four ground cover treatments (compost, compost and landscape fabric, compost and straw mulch, and compost and wood mulch). We extracted nematodes from soil samples collected before planting, at midseason, and at harvest. By the end of the season, plots with straw had higher counts of Prismatolaimus, Mononchus and total plant-parasites and plots with wood chips had higher counts of Helicotylenchus. Structure index and maturity index 2-5 were also higher in plots with straw at the end of the season. Cultivar had a relatively small impact on the nematode community with USDA PI 404029 plots having the highest Plectus counts and Firebird plots having the highest predator counts at midseason only. The channel and enrichment indexes showed a shift occurred with all four treatments: the soil environment became dominated by bacterial decomposition pathways with nutrient enriched conditions. However, plant biomass was not different between treatments. These results suggest ground covers can influence soil nematode communities in jute leaf production.

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