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Effects of Soil Organic and Inorganic Amendments on Plant-Parasitic Nematodes Population in Citrus

Judith j. Kiptoo1*, Daniel l. Mutisya2, Peris w. Nderitu3, Rotich Godfrey4, Gaudencia j. Kiptoo5, Kibet j.Edith6

Plant-Parasitic Nematodes (PPNs) are problematic to citrus production as they are reported to cause tremendous economic damage leading to reduced quality and yield of fruits. A study was carried out to evaluate nematode response to varied citrus plots of organic and inorganic regimes in two ecologically varied sites in Kenya. The two farms were established in Wote (Muambani) in Makueni County and ADC Suam Orchards in Kitale of Uasin Gish County. In each of the two sites 16 plots were demarcated for soil treatments of (i) Organic manure; (ii) NPK 17:17: 17, (iii) Manure+NPK and (iv)-Nil fertilizer as Control for the plots. These treatments were placed circular around each orange tree radially one-metre from the stem where each plot had 12 plants with 5-metre spacing between trees. The results showed that least nematode infestation occurred on organic amendment at 61.3 and 53.0 parasitic nematodes per plant sample for Kitale and Wote sites respectively. This was 58 % parasite reduction at the two farms in comparison to 145.5 and 124.8 sample counts at the two farms of Kitale and Wote respectively. Combining both organic and inorganic amendments led to 36% parasite reduction. The results lead to recommending an organic amendment in citrus orchards to manage nematodes for higher yields.