Distribution of plant-parasitic nematodes in strawberry and raspberry fields in Quebec

In a survey of plant-parasitic nematodes associated with strawberry (Fragaria x ananassa) and raspberry (Rubus idaeus) in seven Quebec agricultural regions (Eastern Townships, L'Assomption, Mauricie, Nicolet, Quebec, Richelieu, and Saint-Jean), 213 soil samples were analyzed in June and July 1980. The most commonly encountered nematode genus was Pratylenchus, occurring in 56.3 % and 46.4% of sampled strawberry and raspberry fields, respectively. The population density of Pratylenchus was negatively correlated with that of Meloidogyne hapla and with soil pH. No Paratylenchus was found in raspberry fields from the Mauricie and Richelieu regions. M. hapla was found in strawberry fields of the L'Assomption, Nicolet, Quebec and Saint-Jean regions, and also in raspberry fields in the Quebec and Saint-Jean regions. The genus Xiphinema was recorded in only one raspberry field in the Eastern Townships. Tylenchus, Tylenchorhynchus and Helicotylenchus were not found on raspberry. Agricultural regions were divided into homogeneous groups with respect to their nematode distribution as revealed by cluster analysis.