Pathogenicity of Tylenchorhynchus nudus to Creeping Bentgrass and Annual Bluegrass. R. F. DAVIS, Research Associate, USDA-ARS Nematodes, Weeds and Crops Research Unit, Coastal Plain Experiment Station, Tifton, GA 31793. G. R. NOEL, Professor and Research Plant Pathologist, USDA-ARS Crop Protection Research Unit and Department of Plant Pathology, and H. T. WILKINSON, Associate Professor of Plant Pathology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana 61801. Plant Dis. 78:169-173. Accepted for publication 29 October 1993. Copyright 1994 The American Phytopathological Society. DOI: 10.1094/PD-78-0169.

Greenhouse and growth chamber experiments were conducted to determine and compare the effects of Tylenchorhynchus nudus on the root growth of bentgrass (Agrostis palustris) and annual bluegrass (Poa annua), and to examine the relationship between T. nudus population levels and maximum root length of bentgrass and annual bluegrass. Root growth was suppressed by T. nudus on both bentgrass and annual bluegrass, but more so on bluegrass. Annual bluegrass produced longer roots than bentgrass both in the presence and in the absence of the nematode. Maximum root length was functionally related to T. nudus population levels on both grasses

Keyword(s): stunt, turf