Field Eradication of the Potato Rot Nematode, Ditylenchus destructor: A 29-Year History. H. M. Darling, Professor Emeritus, Department of Plant Pathology, University of Wisconsin, Madison 53706. J. Adams, Plant Industry Specialist, and R. L. Norgren, Plant Pathologist-Nematologist, Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection, Madison 53713. Plant Dis. 67:422-423. Accepted for publication 16 September 1982. This article is in the public domain and not copyrightable. It may be freely reprinted with customary crediting of the source. The American Phytopathological Society, 1983. DOI: 10.1094/PD-67-422.

The potato rot nematode, Ditylenchus destructor, was first found in Wisconsin in 1953. Since then, 282.8 ha of infested land have been fumigated with ethylene dibromide. Chemical applications consisted of a fall split-plow sole treatment of 4 gal/0.4 ha (1 acre) initially and followed in 10–14 days by a 2-gal rate made during late August or September. Subsequent surveys have not uncovered a single infested tuber in treated fields although some of the most heavily infested soils treated have had as many as 10 potato crops. Spread of the pest has been stopped through the elimination of infection sources by fumigation, a strict state quarantine limiting movement of infected tubers, and supervision of the disposition of potatoes from infested fields.