Host Status of the Common Weeds of Banana Establishments to Banana Nematodes in Central Uganda

Abstract

Ninety-one weed species belonging to 27 families were identified from 14 banana plots during a survey study to identify the common weeds of banana establishments in central Uganda. The host status of 13 weed species to the banana nematodes Radopholus similis, Helicotylenchus multicinctus and Pratylenchus goodeyi was studied in a screenhouse experiment. R.similis was recovered from only banana roots while H.multicinctus was present in soil and/or roots of banana and nine weed species. H.multicinctus was the only nematode species recovered from soil around six weed species, at population densities much lower than those recovered from banana. P.goodeyi was present in roots of banana and only two weed species, namely, Digitaria velutina and Eleusine indica, at a very low population density compared to banana. The reproductive ratings show that all the weeds in this study are non-hosts of R.similis; D. velutina a poor host of both H.multicinctus and P.goodeyi while Amaranthussp. and S. nigrum are poor hosts of H.multicinctus and non-hosts of P.goodeyi. No nematodes were recovered from Tagetes minuta, Cyperus esculentus, Senecio disfolius and Digitaria scalarum, indicating that these four weed species are non-hosts of banana nematodes.