Nematicidal Activity of Various Medicinal and Aromatic Plants Under in vitro Conditions

Nematicidal efficacy of various medicinal and aromatic plants, viz., Mulhatti (Glycyrrhiza glabra L.), Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera), Senna (Cassia anguistifolia), Satawar (Asparagus racemosus) and Kalmegh (Andrographis paniculata) was evaluated in vitro against root-knot nematode, Meloidogyne javanica and reniform nematode, Rotylenchulus reniformis. Water/methanolic extracts of these plants were prepared and tested against these nematodes at the concentrations of 1:5, 1:10, 1:20, 1:40 and 1:80. Observations on the larval/nematode mortality were recorded 48 h of their exposure to the extracts. Results revealed that among the methanolic extracts tested in vitro, Glycyrrhiza glabra (Mulhatti) and Withania somnifera (Ashwagandha) were highly effective against root-knot nematode (per cent larval mortality in case of G. glabra being 90.7 and 86.6 respectively at 1:5 and 1:10 dilutions while in case of W. somnifera being 96.1, 96.0 and 83.7 at 1:5, 1:10 and 1:20 concentrations, respectively). Against R. reniformis, methanolic extracts of Andrographis paniculata were highly effective at 1:5 concentration (per cent mortality being 84.0).