Prof. Kaloshian and her colleagues from the University of California, Riverside, have developed plants with enhanced immunity resulting in enhanced resistance to RKNs. The methods comprise introducing into a plant a gene editing construct that specifically inhibits activity of G-LecRK-VI.13 gene, a negative regulator of plant immunity. Additionally, the descendant of this plant also carry the enhanced resistance to RKNs. The invention could be used in a broad range of important agricultural crops including rice, lettuce, and tomatoes. This approach holds potential for increasing crop quality and yield, considering that plant damage from RKNs result in poor growth, a decline in quality and yield of the crop, and reduced resistance to environmental stresses. By triggering an enhanced immune response, by eliminating a negative regulator of immunity, the opportunity exists to develop more durable plant resistance towards RKNs and other types of nematodes. Fig 1: Tomato plants, grown in a plastic house, infected with the root-knot nematode Meloidogyne incognita.