Botanical nematicides have recently received increasing interest because of the high risks of some traditional nematicides to human health and the environment. This study evaluated the nematicidal activity of a plant volatile, trans-2-hexenal, against Meloidogyne incognita. This compound exhibited higher activity in a fumigation experiment than in the aqueous phase in vitro. Both in pot tests and in field trials, trans-2-hexenal showed significant efficacy against M. incognita while maintaining excellent plant growth, especially at doses of 1000 and 500 L ha-1, which were superior to that of abamectin at 180 g ha-1 via hole application treatment but not significantly different from fumigation with 400 kg ha-1 of dazomet. Furthermore, plants treated with 500 L ha-1 trans-2-hexenal had fruit yields 20.2 and 45% greater than the control group. On this basis, trans-2-hexenal may be a potential alternative fumigation agent for controlling M. incognita on tomato crops.
Keywords: Meloidogyne incognita; nematicidal activity; soil fumigation; tomato; trans-2-hexenal.