Effect of physiological age on growth vigour of seed potatoes of two cultivars. I. Influence of storage period and temperature on sprouting characteristics

Abstract

The influence of storage temperature and storage period on sprouting capacity and incubation period has been studied for 3 years with cvs. Jaerla and Desiree, stored at 4°C and 12°C, as a part of a combined study on the effect of physiological age on growth vigour. During storage the sprouting capacity gradually increased to a maximum and then declined. The maximum sprouting capacity was reached about 80 to 100 days earlier when tubers were stored at 12°C than at 4°C, and it was reached about 50 days earlier by cv. Jaerla than by cv. Desiree at both storage temperatures. The incubation period deereased linearly with time for both cultivars at both storage temperatures, being most rapid at 12°C, and the period was shorter for cv. Jacrla than for cv. Desiree during the whole storage period.