Biological Control: Nematodes in Pineapple

Pineapple, being an annual plant of the Bromeliaceae family, faces a wide range of pests when grown intensively, which prevents it from being grown continuously on the same plot for several years, making crop rotation necessary; one such pest has drawn particular interest from researchers and farmers:

Nematodes (Rotylenchulus reniformis, Pratylenchus brachyurus, Meloidogyne javanica and incognita), which cause major damage to pineapple by degrading its root system, affecting plant growth, which shows as:

• Stunted size;
• Foliage turning reddish and drying out.

This raises the question of how to effectively control this pest using biological methods, replacing methods that rely on synthetic products, which are increasingly costly and have negative effects not only on human health but also on the environment. This led to the development of an effective technique: improved fallowing using Crotalaria.

Developing the technique

After harvesting the pineapples or their suckers, the plot is put into fallow by planting a Crotalaria species such as C. juncea or C. spectabilis across the whole area, either broadcast or in rows spaced 25 cm x 25 cm apart. Besides its nematode-regulating properties, it:

• Can fix up to 120 kg/ha of nitrogen;
• Grows very quickly and produces a large amount of biomass, which can also be used as animal feed, though only in small amounts (less than 45% of the ration for sheep and less than 10% for cattle).

This method has produced very promising results, since besides cleaning the soil to control pineapple nematodes, it has helped reduce the fallow period to just 6 months while also improving soil fertility, which has had positive effects on the healthy development and yields of the pineapples.

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