Influence of Rice Rotation Systems on Soil Nematode Trophic Groups in Arkansas


  •  Martin Matute    
  •  Merle Anders    

Abstract

The effects of crop rotation sequences and combinations on soil nematode populations were investigated. Tillage versus non-tillage treatments were applied to crop rotation sequences dominated by flooded rice in a split plot design. The rotated crops were rice, soybean, and corn, including a fallow for a total of eight rotation treatments. All nematode feeding groups were recovered i.e bacterial feeding-, fungal feeding-, plant feeding-, carnivorous-, and omnivorous- nematodes. A total of 24 nematode genera in 20 families were identified and categorized into their respective trophic groups and colonizer persister (cp) values. All rotations that included soybean significantly (P<0.05) or numerically increased soil nematode populations, irrespective of trophic groups, while all rotations that included rice and corn, had a nematode reductive effect. No-tillage plots recorded significantly higher populations of the predatory nematodes. The effectiveness of a rotation sequence depends primarily on the crop species and secondarily on soil conditions e.g anaerobic.


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