Abstract

Aim: The study was aimed to evaluate the infestation status of sugar beet by cyst nematode in the Moulouya.

Materials and Methods: Thirty-one samples were collected from the study area by adopting a random sampling pattern. The collected samples were labeled and brought back to the laboratory for extraction, the latter being performed by the technique of Fenwick (1940), modified by Oostenbrink (1960).

Results: Analyses of 31 soil samples revealed the presence of the cyst nematode Heterodera schachtii in 71% of the plots surveyed, with densities ranging from 3 to 300 cysts/300g of soil. The analysis of the different samples collected as well as the survey carried out among the beet growers in the perimeter allowed us to observe that the type of crop succession remains the main factor that acts most on the distribution of this species and on the level of infestation, followed by the type of soil that plays a significant role. The highest levels of infestation were observed in plots where sugar beet returned to the same plot 3 or 2 years in a row with 251 cysts/300g and 113 cysts/300g of soil respectively.

Conclusion: Nematological analyses showed that 66% of infested plots are characterized by a silty-clay texture. The highest infestation levels were observed in plots where sugar beet returns 3 years out of 3 years (251cysts/ 300g soil) and 2 years out of 3 years (113 cysts/ 300g of soil) and the region of Garet in Nador is the most infested by the beet cyst nematode.

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