Abstract
The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of Se enrichment on the growth of sprouts and growth vigour of seed potatoes (Solanum tuberosum L.) stored for 2 to 8 months. Our results showed that Se did not affect the duration of dormancy. At the high addition levels (0.075 and 0.9 mg kg-1 quartz sand), Se had some positive effects on the growth of sprouts. The peak sprouting capacity was reached after 8 months of storage. The highest Se enrichment of tubers had some positive effect on the free putrescine content in sprouts. However, the better growth of sprouts was not consistent with the growth vigour of the seed tubers and yield produced. Selenium had no significant effect on the malondialdehyde (MDA) or on the concentration of soluble sugars and starch. No significant effect of added Se on the early growth, stem and tuber numbers and yield parameters was observed. Irrespective of the level of Se added, the highest yield was harvested from plants produced with seed tubers stored for 6 months. Our results indicate that Se had some positive effects on the growth of sprouts, but it had no consistent effect on the growth vigour of seed tubers.;
Highlights
Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) tubers are usually endodormant at time of harvest: they do not sprout, even under ideal conditions, within a time period of about 2 weeks (Hartmans and van Loon 1987).Dormancy is the physiological state of the tuber in which autonomous sprout growth will not occur within a reasonable period of time even when the tuber is kept in conditions optimal for sprout growth (Van Ittersum 1992, Struik and Wiersema 1999)
Dormancy is the physiological state of the tuber in which autonomous sprout growth will not occur within a reasonable period of time even when the tuber is kept in conditions optimal for sprout growth (Van Ittersum 1992, Struik and Wiersema 1999)
All seed tubers stored for 2 months at 4oC exhibited deep dormancy irrespective of the Se treatment, whereas in the tubers stored for 3 months at 4oC, dormancy was lost during two weeks after transfer to sprouting conditions
Summary
Dormancy is the physiological state of the tuber in which autonomous sprout growth will not occur within a reasonable period of time (usually two weeks) even when the tuber is kept in conditions optimal for sprout growth (Van Ittersum 1992, Struik and Wiersema 1999). The storage duration and conditions factors during storage, i.e. temperature, relative humidity, and diffuse light, affect the physiological age of seed tuber (Struik and Wiersema 1999). Depending on cultivar, these factors may have specific effects
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