First report of Meloidogyne graminis in Türkiye
The root-knot nematode Meloidogyne graminis is native to the USA. Over the last 20 years, M. graminis has expanded its geographical range and was first reported in golf courses in Venezuela (2006), China (2011), Brazil (2018), and Malaysia (2019). M. graminis was recently first reported in the EPPO region, in Türkiye in golf courses in Antalya province in May and June 2021. A possible pathway of introduction may be footwear or other golf equipment with infested soil attached. M. graminis is considered to be a pest of turf grass (e.g. Cynodon spp., Stenotaphrum secundatum) in the USA, but cereal crops such as rice (Oryza sativa), sorghum (Sorghum bicolor), maize (Zea mays), and wheat (Triticum aestivum) can also be hosts.
Note of the EPPO Secretariat: There were reports of M. graminis from coastal dunes in Germany and the Netherlands in the 1980s, but some authors consider that it is a different species; M. maritima.
Sources
Crow WT (2019) Grass root-knot nematode Meloidogyne graminis Whitehead, 1968 (Nematode: Tylenchida: Meloidogynidae). Department of Entomology and Nematology, UF/IFAS Extension Publication EENY722. http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/pdffiles/IN/IN123100.pdf
Uysal G, Mıstanoğlu I, Devran Z (2023) Genetic variation and identification of Meloidogyne graminis populations from golf fields in Antalya province of Türkiye. Journal of Phytopathology 171(7-8), 291-299.