• Nematodes, or roundworms, are some of the most common types of worms that can cause damage to plant life. These nematodes are parasitic, feasting on various parts of plants, especially the roots and leaves. The damage they cause while eating can make infected plants prone to secondary infections of bacteria, viruses or fungi. Nematode infections cause stunted plants, deformed growths and even plant death, according to North Carolina State University.
  
  

Root Gall

• Root-knot nematodes produce irregular growths that are called "galls" on the roots of their host plants. These galls can look just like the nodules caused by harmless bacteria. Removal of a gall rips the tissue of the root, causing additional harm to the plant. Damage from this type of nematode causes inadequate growth, yellowing leaves, loss of leaves, stem death, darkened roots and stunted growth. North Carolina State University says root gall can result in the death of the infected plant.
  
  

Foliar Nematode Disease

• Foliar nematode disease, also called dieback and bunchy top, is caused when foliar nematodes infect a plant's unopened leaf buds. Foliar nematodes cause blotched, purple, bronze or yellow colored leaves. This disease soon causes the leaves to curl up, and eventually turn black and die. Plants infected with these nematodes suffer from stunted growth, and death of the whole plant may result, according to the University of Illinois.
  
  

Necrotic Ringspot

• Necrotic ringspot is a disease of the blueberry plant caused indirectly by soil nematodes. Nematodes that live in the soil around the plants can carry viruses that are harmless to them but harmful to plants. As these nematodes feed on the blueberry bushes, they can infect them with these viruses, causing necrotic ringspot. Bushes with this infection do not grow well, and their twigs start dying. North Carolina State University says spots and rings also appear on the leaves.
  
  

Root Lesions

• Root lesions are caused by a nematode which exists in both the soil and the plant itself. Seen in raspberry bushes and many types of woody ornamental plants, they are less noticeable in the winter and spring but increase considerably in the summer. These nematodes cause lesions in the roots of the plants they infect. This results in plants that are off-color, dwarfed and are not growing correctly, according to Oregon State University.
  
  

Potato Cyst Disease

• Potato cyst disease is caused by potato cyst nematodes, which can kill the plant. Female potato cyst nematodes form dark, brownish-red cysts that hold from 200 to 600 eggs. At harvest, many cysts become detached from the roots and remain in the soil -- which is a source of infestation for future potato crops, says Horticulture Week.