Nematode resistance in bitter gourd to Meloidogyne incognita

Abstract

Bitter gourd (Momordica balsamina L.) – indigenous to tropical areas of Africa – has nutritional, ethnomedicinal, neutraceutical and pesticidal attributes which are potentially attractive to various industries with bias towards rural development. However, the southern root-knot nematode (Meloidogyne incognita, Kofoid & White, Chitwood) and its biological races constitute serious limitation to successful introduction of alternative crops with economic attributes, particularly when the target plants have limited degree of nematode resistance. A pot trial was therefore conducted to determine the degree of nematode resistance in M. balsamina seedlings to M. incognita race 2. Seedlings were inoculated at seven levels of M. incognita race 2, which were laid out in a randomised complete block design, with 12 replications. After three nematode generations, the mean reproductive factor (RF = Pf/Pi) values at all levels of inoculation were less than unity, while nematode infection had no effect on growth of M. balsamina seedlings, which suggested that this plant was resistant to the test nematode. In conclusion, due to its resistance to M. incognita race 2, M. balsamina could serve as an alternative crop for use as vegetable, ethnomedicinal and/or neutraceutical plant in rural communities with high populations of M. incognita race 2.