Abstract
ABSTRACT Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) cultivation has a high demand for management and treatments during the vegetative cycle in the field. Among these requirements, water management is a limiting factor of tuber productivity and quality. This study aimed to determine the most appropriate soil water depletion depth for irrigation management in potato crops of Agata cultivar, under the edaphoclimatic conditions of Guarapuava-PR, considering its influence on crop vegetative development. The study was conducted using four water depletion depths in the soil (12, 24, 36, and 48 mm). The different irrigation treatments promoted differences in shoot dry mass, leaf area index (LAI), number of tubers per plant, and productivity. The highest yield was observed for 27.62 mm depletion. When irrigation depth was increased to 48 mm, tubers showed individual mass reduction and hence productivity, affecting commercial classification. A cumulative depletion of about 27 mm between irrigations proved to be the most adequate management to supply the water demand of Agata potato cultivar.
Highlights
Potato is of extreme importance as a food source for its carbohydrate richness and potential volume production worldwide (FAO, 2014)
Based on soil water depletion, 15 irrigations were applied for T1 treatment (12 mm), 8 irrigations for T2 (24 mm), 5 irrigations for T3 (36 mm), and 4 irrigations for T4 (48 mm)
The last irrigation was performed for T3 at 91 days after planting (DAP), for T1 and T4 at 93 DAP and for T2 at 98 DAP (Figure 1)
Summary
Potato is of extreme importance as a food source for its carbohydrate richness and potential volume production worldwide (FAO, 2014). Regarding the management of cultivation conditions, Fernandes et al (2011) and Mantovani et al (2013) highlighted the responses of the crop to irrigation since an adequate water availability helps cultivars to express productive potential. In this sense, Marquelli et al (1988) considered potato crops as sensitive to water stress at all developmental stages, which, according to Yuan et al (2003), is high in this crop due to its shallow root system
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