Meloidogyne graminicola an emerging threat to rice and wheat in Punjab province in Pakistan

Root-knot nematodes are destructive pests of vegetables in pakistan. yield losses caused by root-knot nematodes were estimated 10-40% (javed et al., 2010). meloidogyne graminicola a member of this group is becoming an emerging threat to rice. this nematode causes heavy yield losses in rice ranging from 30% under field condition to 97% under green house conditions (sharma et al., 2005) and first time reported from pakistan (munir & bridge, 2003). however, no comprehensive approach was applied to estimate the infestation and yield losses caused by this nematode in the rice belt of punjab.