Abstract
Boron (B) deficiency is a widespread problem in alkaline soils which affects yield and quality of potato but is often ignored by the growers. That’s why, we compared the impact of different methods of boron application (foliar spray, fertigation and soil dressing) along with control on boron use efficiency (BUE), quality and yield of potato in alkaline soils. Boron (0.5 kg ha-1) applied as a foliar spray had significantly increased plant height, tuber per plant, tuber volume and enhanced the quality in terms of vitamin C, starch and B content of potato compared to other methods. Moreover, foliar applied B significantly improved B uptake and it use efficiency over other application methods. B concentration in tubers were strongly correlated with vitamin C and starch contents. The application methods were ranked as foliar spray>fertigation>soil dressing in term of their effectiveness towards potato yield and quality improvement. Thus, for optimum production of good quality potato, B should be applied as foliar spray at the rate of 0.5 kg B ha-1 in existing agro-climatic conditions.
Highlights
IntroductionPotato (Solanum tuberosum L.) is an important cash crop in the world and is used in many commercial food products such as French fries, chips and starches [1]
Higher biological yield was obtained from those plots receiving B as foliar spray than fertigation followed by soil dressing, while lower was observed in control
Mean values indicated that foliar application gives higher number of tuber plant-1 followed by boron fertigation which was not statistically different from boron applied through soil application
Summary
Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) is an important cash crop in the world and is used in many commercial food products such as French fries, chips and starches [1]. Boron stress in Solanum tuberosum L. carbohydrates, and vitamins [2]. Potato growth and productivity can be severely influenced by abiotic stresses like nutrients and water deficiency, high temperature, strong wind and exposure to UV(ultra violet) radiation. Boron (B) is a micro essential plant nutrient and is deficient in light and alkaline soils, having low organic matter and high pH [4, 5]. Its deficiency is a main yield limiting factor in potato productivity in Pakistan. Shirur et al [6] obtained maximum fresh weight, tuber number, dry matter content and potato tuber yield with incorporation of 1.1 kg B ha-1 in alkaline soil. Boron is slowly released from soil because it is tied up by soil organic matter and only becomes available with the decomposition [7]
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