Abstract
The present study revealed that Meloidogyne spp. were the most widely distributed plant parasitic nematodes of sugarcane in Bangladesh. The other plant parasitic nematodes recorded in the study as pests of sugarcane were Hoplolaimus, Longidorus, Pratylenchus, Trichodorus, Tylenchorhynchus and Xiphinema. Edaphic factors viz. soil pH, soil textures, artificially composed sand and clay mixture, some macro and micro nutrients along with pressmud and bagasse affected the incidence of root-knot disease. Sandy loam soil, sand and N increased the incidence of root galls and mature females of root-knot nematodes. On the other hand, silty loam soil, clay, K, pressmud and bagasse reduced the incidence of root-knots and nematodes. Soil texture, NPK, pressmud and bagasse also affected different yield parameters of sugarcane under different inoculated and non-inoculated conditions. Due to the inoculation of Meloidogyne spp. significant reductions in number of leaves, length of leaf, number of roots, length of roots, weight of roots, height of cane, length of internode, number of tillers, number of millable canes,weight of millable canes and recovery of sugar were observed. Most of the growth and yield parameters showed significant negative correlations with the galling incidence and number of root-knot neamtodes. Computer simulation model of nematode population and sugarcane growth system based on system dynamics methodology has been developed. The model has been simulated to predict the dynamics of nematode population and sugarcane production and the model predictions agree well with the reported values in the literature at least qualitatively. The model can be used to simulate a range of theoretical and practical problems.