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A Model for Infestation Foci of Potato Cyst Nematodes Globodera rostochiensis and G. pallida

Infestation foci of potato cyst nematodes (Globodera rostochiensis and G. pallida) in the provinces of Zeeland, Friesland, Groningen, and Drente of the Netherlands were sampled to validate a model describing infestation foci based on data from Flevoland. Eighty-two fields were presampled to locate infestation foci using a coarse sampling grid (8 × 3 m). Parts of 37 fields containing one or more foci were sampled intensively by extracting at least 1.5 kg of soil per square meter (1.33 × 0.75 m). Forty foci were analyzed for spatial distribution characteristics of cysts using multiple regression with generalized linear models and classical linear models. The results showed that the data from all investigated cropping areas fit well to an exponential model with two parameters, the length and width gradient parameters. Significant differences in these parameter values between cropping areas could not be demonstrated. As both parameters follow a normal distribution, the probability of any combination can be described by a bivariate normal distribution. Gradient parameters were correlated, but significant correlations between these parameters and certain variables such as the nematode species involved, the time interval between sampling and the last potato crop, soil type, cropping frequency, and cyst density in the focus center could not be demonstrated.