Globodera artemisiae (Eroshenko et Kazachenko, 1972) was found in Poland in autumn of 2004. The nematodes developed on Artemisia vulgaris L. Morphological and morphometric characteristics of the Polish population correspond to earlier known populations from Far East of Russia, Armenia, China, Germany and Sweden. The traditional identification was confirmed by molecular methods. On the basic of rDNA sequences of G. artemisiae, deposited in GenBank the product of expected size was obtained. Subsequently, the results were confirmed by sequencing analysis.

Ditylenchus destructor is a serious pest of numerous economically important plants worldwide. The population of this nematode species was isolated from the root zone of Ammophila arenaria on a Baltic Sea sand dune. This population’s morphological and morphometrical characteristics corresponded to D. destructor data provided so far, except for the stylet knobs’ height (2.1–2.9 vs 1.3–1.8) and their arrangement (laterally vs slightly posteriorly sloping), the length of a hyaline part on the tail end (0.8–1.8 vs 1–2.9), the pharyngeal gland arrangement in relation to the intestine (dorsal or ventral vs dorsal, ventral or lateral) and the appearance of vulval lips (smooth vs annulated). Ribosomal DNA sequence analysis confirmed the identity of D. destructor from a coastal dune.

The population dynamics of Tetranychus urticae (two-spotted spider mite – TSSM) are influenced by environmental factors, which were investigated to identify methods limiting the development and harmfulness of this pest. This paper presents findings from a laboratory study on the effect of spraying with water-based extracts of Mentha piperita and Tagetes patula plants on the growth rate of TSSM larvae and nymphs. The time required for the transformation of the larvae into protonymphs was longer for T. patula water- based extracts than extracts from M. piperita. Differences in the time of transformation from the nymphal stage to adult TSSM were also observed depending on the plant waterbased extracts, their concentration, and the host plant on which nymphs were developing. The use of 100 g ∙ l-1 French marigold extract was associated with longer transformation time of nymphs on discs of pea leaves than all tested concentrations of French marigold extract applied to sugar beet leaves. Ten percent of the extracts from peppermint plants had a stronger limiting effect on TSSM nymphs on pea leaves than on bean or sugar beet leaves.