Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-dh8gc Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-03T05:53:24.756Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Some factors affecting the expression of the physiological age of potato seed tubers

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 March 2009

T. C. Gillison ,
P. D. Jenkins  and
J. D. Hayes
T. C. Gillison
Affiliation:
Department of Agriculture, University College of Wales, Aberystwyth, Dyfed
P. D. Jenkins
Affiliation:
Department of Agriculture, University College of Wales, Aberystwyth, Dyfed
J. D. Hayes
Affiliation:
Department of Agriculture, University College of Wales, Aberystwyth, Dyfed
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Summary

Two experiments, each involving five potato cultivars, investigated the effects of date of planting and harvesting of the seed crop, and of two seed storage temperature sequences, on date of dormancy break, sprout growth and subsequent field growth. The seed storage sequences in each case involved early or late accumulation of temperature to produce a physiological age of 600 day-degrees > 4 °C.

The effects of seed crop husbandry on most variables were small, with the exception of date of dormancy break, which occurred earliest when the seed crop was planted and harvested early. Effects of temperature sequence were more pronounced, although cultivars differed significantly in degree of response. Late temperature accumulation gave a larger number of sprouts per tuber, the length of the longest sprout was increased, as was the total sprout length per tuber. Emergence was more rapid, ground cover was initially greater and the number of mainstems per plant was greater with late temperature accumulation. Secondary stem production was more prolific and the total number of stems per plant greater when temperature accumulation was early. The number of tubers per plant reflected the total number of stems, and individual tuber size generally decreased as numbers increased, with the result that storage temperature treatment affected graded yields in some varieties.

The field growth of the crops from the late temperature accumulation treatment was in many ways suggestive of greater physiological age than the early temperature accumulation treatment, although the number of day-degrees accumulated was the same in each case. It is possible that the number of day-degrees underestimates physiological age as the period of accumulation is delayed.

Type
Research Article
Information
The Journal of Agricultural Science , Volume 108 , Issue 2 , April 1987 , pp. 437 - 451
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1987

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Allen, E. J., Bean, J. N., Griffith, R. L. & O'Brien, P. J. (1979). Effects of length of sprouting period on growth and yield of contrasting potato varieties. Journal of Agricultural Science, Cambridge 92, 151–163.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
O'Brien, P. J. (1982). Effects of seed crop treatments on the growth and yield of the progeny tubers of early potato cultivars. Ph.D. thesis, University College of Wales. Aberystwyth.Google Scholar
O'Brien, P. J., Allen, E. J., Bean, J. N., Griffith, R. L., Jones, S. A. & Jones, J. L. (1983). Accumulated day-degrees as a measure of physiological age and the relationships with growth and yield in early potato varieties. Journal of Agricultural Science, Cambridge 101, 613–631.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rudeforth, C. C. (1974). Soils in Dyfed. II. Soil Survey Record no. 24. Harpenden: Soil Survey of England and Wales.Google Scholar
Toosey, R. D. (1964). The pre-sprouting of seed potatoes: factors affecting sprout growth and subsequent yield. Part I. Field Crop Abstracts 17, 161–168.Google Scholar
Watson, D. J. & Watson, M. A. (1953). Comparative physiological studies on the growth of field crops. III. The effect of infection with beet yellows and beet mosaic viruses on the growth and yield of the sugar beet root crop. Annals of Applied Biology 40, 1–37.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wurr, D. C. E. (1978). The effects of the date of defoliation of the seed crop and storage temperature treatment of the seed on subsequent growth. 1. Sprout growth. Journal of Agricultural Science, Cambridge 91, 737–745.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wurr, D. C. E. (1979). The effects of variation in the storage temperature of seed potatoes on sprout growth and subsequent yield. Journal of Agricultural Science, Cambridge 93, 619–622.CrossRefGoogle Scholar