<i>Festulolium</i> and fungal endophyte associations: host status for <i>Meloidogyne incognita</i> and nematotoxic plant extracts

Abstract

<i>Festulolium</i> hybrids are forage grasses used worldwide in temperate climates. They are associated with the fungal endophyte <i>Epichloë uncinata</i>, which aids in nutrient uptake, drought tolerance, and production of metabolites that protect against parasites and herbivores. <i>Epichloë uncinata</i> produces loline alkaloids, which can deter insect pests. <i>Festulolium</i> has not been widely studied for susceptibility to plant-parasitic nematodes, so <i>Festulolium</i> lines, with and without fungal endophytes, were tested in the greenhouse for host status to the root-knot nematode <i>Meloidogyne incognita</i>. All were poor hosts, regardless of line or endophyte status. Pepper seedlings planted into soil following removal of the <i>Festulolium</i> plants were infected by nematodes, likely because of surviving nematodes from the original inoculation combined with some reproduction on <i>Festulolium</i>. Lolines were found in shoots and roots of all endophyte-associated lines, and some types of lolines in roots increased after nematode infection. Methanolic extracts from roots and shoots of a tested <i>Festulolium</i> line did not inhibit egg hatch, but killed nearly a third of second-stage juveniles whether an endophyte was present or not. Further studies would indicate whether these <i>Festulolium</i> lines aid in suppressing field populations of <i>M. incognita</i>.