This chapter provides an insight into the economically important nematode pests of cereal grains other than rice, such as maize, wheat, barley, sorghum, millet, oat and rye. It details the distribution, biology and life cycle, damage potential and economic importance of major nematode pests. Viable management options for their control are also given, which include cultural practices, chemical and biological methods, and host resistance.

The root-knot nematode, Meloidogyne javanica is a devastating pest affecting tomato production worldwide. Entomopathogenic nematodes (EPNs) are considered very promising biocontrol agents that could be used to effectively manage plant-parasitic nematode. The antagonistic activity of five EPN strains isolated from different fields in Morocco was evaluated against juvenile (J2s) antagonism in soil, the number of egg masses, and the galling index of M. javanica and J2s reproduction in the root. In greenhouse experiments, Steinernema feltiae strains (EL45 and SF-MOR9), Steinernema sp. (EL30), and those of Heterorhabditis bacteriophora (HB-MOR7 and EL27) were applied to the soil alongside RKN J2s. There was a significant reduction in M. javanica densities in the soil and roots by EPNs treatments when compared to the positive control. The EPNs decreased both egg masses formation and galling index by 80% compared to the positive control. The application of EPNs at a rate of 50 and 75 infective juveniles (IJs) cm−2 gave significant control of all studied nematological parameters compared to the positive control, which confirmed the importance of the doses applied. The applied dose was significantly correlated with M. javanica parameters according to polynomial regression models. The results also showed that S. feltiae strain (EL45) significantly increased plant height and root length, while H. bacteriophora strain (HB-MOR7) only enhanced root fresh weight. Therefore, both indigenous EPN strains; EL45 and SF-MOR9 have eco-friendly biological potential against M. javanica in vegetable crops.

The dryland root rot (foot/crown) caused by Fusarium spp. attacks cereals especially wheat and causes severe yield loss by reducing both grain quantity and quality. Among those Fusarium species attacking wheat crop is the Fusarium culmorum species which has been reported as the main crown rot causal agent in Turkey. Unfortunately, up-to-date, there is only some wheat genotypes with partial resistant to Fusarium spp. Therefore, this study was carried out to find new sources of resistance in diverse wheat genotypes to limit the damage caused by Fusarium disease. In this study, a total of 141 genotypes and breeding lines were obtained from 19 different countries, provided via the International Winter Wheat Improvement Program (IWWIP) and screened for their resistance reactions to a local isolate of Fusarium culmorum under three different environmental conditions (growth room, greenhouse and field) in Turkey in 2012. The best performed genotypes in terms of resistant were then rescreened in 2013 for data validation. Out of the 141 phenotyped wheat genotypes, 17 genotypes (12 %) ranked as moderately resistant (MR) at seedling and/or adult growth stage. The genotypes from Mexico seemed to have adult plant resistant rather than seedling resistance which was higher in the USA genotypes. Winter bread wheats PATWIN YR5

Spring barley is an important high-value crop globally.However, it is highly susceptible to soil-borne diseases in Kazakhstan and the world. Bipolaris sorokiniana (Sacc.) Shoemaker is the most important soil-borne pathogen that causes root rot and spot blotch diseases in cereal crops. This study aimed to evaluate the ability of B. sorokiniana isolated from spring barley leaves to survive in plant residuals of different crops. The fungus was isolated from spring barley leaves from the Zholbarys agro farm of Kerbylak district of Almaty, southeastern Kazakhstan, in 2021. Laboratory experiments were conducted at Kazakh National Agrarian Research University. The study was conducted on 10 th days of seedlings of cereal, legume, and oilseed crops. The obtained results showed that seedlings of spring barley, spring wheat, and oats retained the B. sorokiniana infection. Interestingly, the infection of B. sorokiniana isolated from leaves of spring barley statistically significantly increased symptoms of spot blotch on spring wheat and spring barley seedlings, while symptoms decreased on oats (P-value <0.01). The introduction of rapeseed, chickpeas, peas, and oats into the crop rotation system in southeastern Kazakhstan could limit the volume of the B. sorokiniana infection in spring wheat and spring barley. On rapeseed, peas, and chickpeas seedlings no symptoms of spot blotch were observed (P-value <0.01).