Symptoms in plants vary based on the growth stage at the time of infection. When seedlings are infected, symptoms include stunting and reduced leaf growth, and older outer leaves become yellow and wilted during the hot period of the day. The taproot tends to be stunted with fibrous “bearded roots,” somewhat similar in appearance to plants with Rhizomania. When older sugarbeet plants are infected by sugarbeet cyst nematode, symptoms may not be noticeable. The most important confirmation of sugarbeet cyst nematode infection is the presence of white to yellow lemon-shaped females attached to feeder roots or yellow-brown cysts (dead mature females) in soil. In sugarbeet fields, sugarbeet cyst nematode infestation initially appears as circular to oval areas of stunted plants. Infested plants tend to become pale yellow and wilt, especially in the afternoons of warm and sunny days.