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Tuber Yield (tuber + yield)
Selected AbstractsBrackish water subirrigation for vegetables,IRRIGATION AND DRAINAGE, Issue 2 2003R. M. Patel eaux saumâtres; irrigation souterraine; poivron vert; pommes de terre Abstract As freshwater resources for irrigation are being depleted rapidly, recent emphasis has been on the development of nonconventional water sources: reuse of agricultural drainage water, use of industrial or municipal wastewater, and use of brackish water for irrigation. Experiments conducted in field lysimeters over three seasons sought to investigate the feasibility of using brackish water for growing moderately sensitive crops. Brackish waters, with salinity levels of 1, 5 and 9 dS m,1, were used. In 1993 the effects of a factorial combination of three subirrigation water salinity levels, two water table depths and four NPK fertilizer combinations on salt buildup in an initially nonsaline soil and on green pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) performance were assessed. A gradual increase in soil solution salinity (ECsw) from the water table to the soil surface was evident; however, throughout the growing season, the ECsw did not reach a level that could seriously damage the crop. There was no significant difference in pepper yields due to either salinity of subirrigation water or water table depth. In 1994, two potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) cultivars were grown in the soil, which was salinized with 3.5 dS m,1 water before planting tubers. The salt buildup pattern was similar to that observed in 1993; however, the ECsw levels were higher in 1994 due to the higher initial soil salinity. Moreover, a decrease in ECsw was observed near the water table in lysimeters subirrigated with 1 dS m,1 water. For both cultivars, no significant difference in tuber yield was observed due to either water table depth or subirrigation water salinity. In 1995, three potato cultivars were grown in a nonsaline soil as well as a soil presalinized with 2 dS m,1 water. In the topsoil layer, higher rate of increase in ECsw was observed in the saline soil compared to the nonsaline soil. No significant difference in total tuber yield was observed due to either the initial soil salinity levels or subirrigation water salinity levels. Brackish water with salinity levels of up to 9 dS m,1, when applied through subirrigation, could be used to successfully produce green peppers and potatoes under semiarid to arid conditions. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. RÉSUMÉ Comme les ressources en eau douce utilisées poor l'irrigation s'épuisent rapidement, les récentes recherches tentent de mettre l'emphase sur le développement de sources d'eau non-conventionnelles: la réutilisation de l'eau de drainage agricole, l'utilisation des eaux usées municipales et des eaux saumâtres pour l'irrigation des cultures. Lors de pénuries d'eau douce les eaux saumâtres ont été utilisées pour l'irrigation souterraine de maïs, mais la salinité de la couche supérieur du sol a été réduite en raison de la pluie. Dans les régions arides et semi-arides cette méthode s'est limitée à quelques essais seulement. En raison des quantités limitées d'eau de bonne qualité, on ne peut irriguer de vastes étendues agricoles en régions arides. Or, si l'utilisation des eaux saumâtres s'avérait un succès il serait possible d'améliorer les rendements agricoles. Il est donc nécessaire d'évaluer l'utilisation des eaux saumâtres dans les systèmes d'irrigation souterrains en milieu aride. Des expériences en lysimètres au cours de trois saisons, dans le but d'étudier la faisabilité d'utiliser des eaux saumâtres pour l'irrigation souterraine de cultures moyennement sensibles, furent entreprises en 1993 et 1994. Des eaux saumâtres avec des niveaux de salinité de 1, 5 et 9 dS m,1, furent utilisés. En 1993, les effets d'une combinaison factorielle de trois niveaux de salinité, deux profondeurs de nappe phréatique et quatre combinaisons de fertilisation NPK ont servi à évaluer l'accumulation de sel dans un sol initialement non-salin où le poivron vert (Capsicum annuum L.) a été cultivé. Une augmentation graduelle de la salinité de la solution du sol, de la nappe d'eau souterraine jusqu'à la surface, fut évidente. Bien que durant la saison de croissance, la conductivité électrique de la solution du sol (ECsw) n'ait pas atteint un niveau qui aurait pu endommager sérieusement la culture. Ni les différents niveaux de salinité ni la profondeur de la nappe d'eau souterraine n'ont affecté de façon significative les rendements de poivrons. En 1994, deux cultivars de pommes de terre (Solanum tuberosum L.) furent cultivés dans un sol rendu salin, après avoir été irrigué avec une eau d'un niveau de salinité de 3.5 dS m,1, préalablement à la plantation des tubercules. L'accumulation de sel suivit une tendance semblable à celle observée en 1993. Cependant, les niveaux de ECsw enregistrés en 1994 furent plus élevés en raison du taux de salinité initial plus élevé. De plus, une baisse de ECsw fut observée près de la nappe d'eau souterraine dans les lysimètres irrigués avec une eau d'un niveau de salinité de 1 dS m,1. Ni les différents niveaux de salinité ni la profondeur de la nappe d'eau souterraine n'ont affecté de façon significative le rendement de pommes de terre de chacun des cultivars. En 1995, trois cultivars de pommes de terre ont été cultivés dans un soil non salin ainsi que dans un sol rendu salin au moyen d'une eau avec une conductivité électrique de 2 dS m,1. Dans la couche supérieure du sol, un plus important taux d'augmentation de conductivité électrique a été observé dans le sol salin que dans le sol non salin. Il n'y a pas eu de différence significative observée en raison des taux initiaux de salinité ou encore en raison des taux de salinité de l'eau dans le système d'irrigation souterrain. Cette étude suggère que les eaux saumâtres d'un niveau de salinité jusqu'à 9 dS m,1 pourraient être utilisées dans les systèmes d'irrigation souterrains pour la culture du poivron vert et de la pomme de terre en régions semi-arides et arides. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Potential of a synthetic aggregation pheromone for integrated pest management of Colorado potato beetleAGRICULTURAL AND FOREST ENTOMOLOGY, Issue 1 2006T. P. Kuhar Abstract 1The relative number of colonizing adult Colorado potato beetles (CPB) Leptinotarsa decemlineata (Say) (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) coming to pitfall traps baited with the aggregation pheromone (S)-3,7-dimethyl-2-oxo-oct-6-ene-1,3-diol [(S)-CPB I] and the use of the pheromone in a trap crop pest management strategy were evaluated in the field for the first time. 2More than five-fold more adult L. decemlineata were caught in pitfall traps baited with the pheromone compared with controls. However, attraction to the pheromone diminished after 5 days in the field. 3In the trap crop management strategy, more colonizing adults were present in pheromone-treated rows of potatoes compared with untreated middle rows. 4Significantly fewer L. decemlineata egg masses and larvae were found in potato plots that were bordered by pheromone-treated rows, or bordered by imidacloprid + pheromone-treated rows, or rows treated at-planting with imidacloprid compared with untreated (control) potato plots. 5Densities of L. decemlineata egg masses and larvae and percentage defoliation were significantly lower, and marketable tuber yield significantly higher, in conventional imidacloprid-treated potatoes compared with all other treatments. 6Although our results demonstrate the potential for use of the aggregation pheromone in the management of L. decemlineata in the field, more research is needed to optimize the release rates of the attractant and incorporate control methods for cohabiting pests. [source] Top-cross vs. poly-cross as alternative to test-cross for estimating the general combining ability in potatoPLANT BREEDING, Issue 5 2008J. Gopal Abstract Test-crosses for estimating combining ability in potato although useful are difficult to make being labour intensive and time consuming, and due to the problem of sterility. The objective of the present study was to test methods for estimating general combining ability (GCA) of parents based on fewer matings. The GCA of 12 females estimated based on matings with specific single testers (top-cross) and three types of bulk pollen (poly-cross) were compared with those estimated by 72 (12 × 6) test-crosses, using common testers in three types of matings. The study was conducted for 2 years at each of the two locations representing short-days subtropical conditions in plains and long-days temperate conditions in hills of India. Analysis of variance of test-crosses showed that both general and specific combining ability effects were important for tuber yield, late blight resistance as well as general impression, the characters studied. Correlation coefficients among three types of matings showed that bulk pollen matings had poor effectiveness in predicting the GCA of the females, whereas matings with selected individual testers resulted in GCA estimates similar to those based on six testers. Thus use of top-cross involving selected tester could substantially reduce the number of matings required for estimating the GCA. Among the six testers used, the tester CFK69.1 could estimate the GCA of the females with reasonably high accuracy both for tuber yield and general impression, and ,Tobique' for reaction to late blight. [source] Linkage and quantitative trait locus mapping of foliage late blight resistance in the wild species Solanum verneiPLANT BREEDING, Issue 3 2006K. K. Sørensen Abstract The global cultivation of potato (Solanum tuberosum) is threatened by epidemics caused by new variants of the late blight pathogen, Phytophthora infestans. New sources of durable late blight resistance are urgently needed and these may be found in wild Solanum species. The diploid wild species, S. vernei, has not previously been subjected to mapping of quantitative trait loci (QTLs) for late blight resistance. Two populations designated HGIHJS and HGG, originating from a cross between a clone of S. vernei and two different S. tuberosum clones were evaluated in field trials for late blight infestation. The relative area under the disease progress curve (RAUDPC) was estimated and used for QTL mapping. A linkage map of S. vernei, comprising 11 linkage groups, nine of which could be assigned to chromosomes, was constructed. Results indicated that the resistance in S. vernei was quantitatively inherited. Significant QTLs for late blight resistance were identified on chromosomes VIII (HGG), VI and IX (HGIHJS). In addition, potential QTLs were detected on chromosomes VII (HGIHJS) and IX (HGG). A putative and a significant QTL for tuber yield were found on chromosomes VI and VII in HGG, but no linkage between yield and resistance was indicated. The QTL for late blight resistance, which mapped to chromosome IX, could be useful for late blight resistance breeding as it was located close to the microsatellite marker STM1051 in both populations. [source] Reciprocal effects in true potato seed breeding in short-day length environmentsPLANT BREEDING, Issue 4 2003A. M. Golmirzaie Abstract Reciprocal crosses may have significantly distinct performances regarding tuber characteristics in potato, suggesting the importance of cytoplasmic effects in this crop. The selection of parents for true potato seed breeding therefore needs to consider this potential effect when determining the direction of a cross. The aim of this research was to determine whether a broad-based true potato seed breeding population, developed at the Centro Internacional de la Papa, could be affected by cytoplasmic effects in the short-day length environments of the tropics. Two random sets of reciprocal biparental crosses were included in the first set of experiments, which were grown in two contrasting Peruvian locations. Only one out of 14 reciprocal crosses showed significantly distinct performance for tuber yield and tuber set. In the second set, only one of each of the 12 reciprocal crosses had distinct performance for vine earliness, days to flowering and flowering intensity, but four of the reciprocal crosses in the second set showed distinct pollen production. The results suggest that cytoplasmic effects in this breeding population are more important for reproductive characteristics such as pollen production than for tuber yield. This finding is not surprising because male sterility in potato results from the interaction between sensitive cytoplasm and dominant nuclear genes. [source] Heterotic effects for yield and tuber solids and type of gene action for five traits in 4x potato families derived from interploid (4x-2x) crossesPLANT BREEDING, Issue 2 2000J. A. Buso Abstract The degree of heterosis for total tuber yield (TTY) and total solids (TS) in 4x-2x crosses was estimated by comparing the performance of 12 families with their respective parents in two locations in Wisconsin (USA). The parental 2x clones were Phureja-haploid Tuberosum hybrids with 2n -pollen production by first-division restitution. The general combining ability (GCA) and specific combining ability (SCA) were estimated for TTY, TS, vine maturity (VM), length of tuber sprout dormancy (LD), and tuber eye depth (ED). Family performance for TTY ranged from 74 to 146% at Hancock (E#1) and from 77 to 287 at Rhinelander (E#2) when compared with that of the 4x parent group. For VM, the families were late maturing, but a few precocious ones were identified. For TS, the families had heterosis of 5.1% over the 4x parent group. The families had slightly higher ED values than the 4x parents, but families with values within the commercial range were identified. The family average for LD (54 days) was closer to the 2x group (51 days) than to the 4x group (88 days). The direction and magnitude of the parent-family relationships were variable. The 4x parent TTY was correlated with progeny in E#1 but not E#2. The 2x parent VM had correlation with the offspring at E#2 but not at E#1. The type of gene action had a trait-specific expression. Significant SCA and GCA variances were observed, suggesting that additive as well as non-additive genetic effects were operating. The 4x-2x crosses were able to generate heterotic families for TTY and TS in combination with other useful traits. However, no promising results were found for LD because of the apparent dominance of the short-dormancy phenotype. This result indicates the need of additional selection and breeding efforts for some specific traits when using S. phureja -derived germplasm. [source] Altered metabolic fluxes result from shifts in metabolite levels in sucrose phosphorylase-expressing potato tubersPLANT CELL & ENVIRONMENT, Issue 10 2002A. R. Fernie Abstract As reported in a previous paper (Plant, Cell and Environment 24, 357,365, 2001), introduction of sucrose phosphorylase into the cytosol of potato results in increased respiration, an inhibition of starch accumulation and decreased tuber yield. Herein a more detailed investigation into the effect of sucrose phosphorylase expression on tuber metabolism, in order to understand why storage and growth are impaired is described. (1) Although the activity of the introduced sucrose phosphorylase was low and accounted for less than 10% of that of sucrose synthase its expression led to a decrease in the activities of enzymes of starch synthesis relative to enzymes of glycolysis and relative to total amylolytic activity. (2) Incubation of tuber discs in [14C]glucose revealed that the transformants display a two-fold increase of the unidirectional rate of sucrose breakdown. However this was largely compensated by a large stimulation of sucrose re-synthesis and therefore the net rate of sucrose breakdown was not greatly affected. Despite this fact major shifts in tuber metabolism, including depletion of sucrose to very low levels, higher rates of glycolysis, and larger pools of amino acids were observed in these lines. (3) Expression of sucrose phosphorylase led to a decrease of the cellular ATP/ADP ratio and energy charge in intact growing tubers. It was estimated that at least 30% of the ATP formed during respiration is consumed as a result of the large acceleration of the cycle of sucrose breakdown and re-synthesis in the transformants. Although the absolute rate of starch synthesis in short-term labelling experiments with discs rose, starch synthesis fell relative to other fluxes including respiration, and the overall starch content of the tubers was lower than in wild-type tubers. (4) External supply of amino acids to replace sucrose as an osmoticum led to a feed-back inhibition of glycolysis, but did not restore allocation to starch. (5) However, an external supply of the non-metabolizable sucrose analogue palatinose , but not sucrose itself , stimulated flux to starch in the transformants. (6) The results indicate that the impaired performance of sucrose phosphorylase-expressing tubers is attributable to decreased levels of sucrose and increased energy consumption during sucrose futile cycling, and imply that sucrose degradation via sucrose synthase is important to maintain a relatively large sucrose pool and to minimize the ATP consumption required for normal metabolic function in the wild type. [source] Reduced amino acid content in transgenic potato tubers due to antisense inhibition of the leaf H+/amino acid symporter StAAP1THE PLANT JOURNAL, Issue 2 2003Wolfgang Koch Summary Transport processes across the plasma membrane of leaf vascular tissue are essential for transport and distribution of assimilates. In potato, leaves are the predominant sites for nitrate reduction and amino acid biosynthesis. From there, assimilated amino acids are exported through the phloem to supply tubers with organic nitrogen. To study the role of amino acid transporters in long-distance transport and allocation of organic nitrogen in potato plants, a gene encoding a functional, leaf-expressed amino acid permease StAAP1 was isolated. Similar to the sucrose transporter SUT1, StAAP1 expression was induced during the sink-to-source transition, indicating a role in phloem loading. To test the role of StAAP1, expression was inhibited by an antisense approach. Transgenic plants with reduced StAAP1 expression were phenotypically indistinguishable from wild type, as were photosynthetic capacity and tuber yield. However, tubers from antisense StAAP1 plants showed up to 50% reduction in free amino acid contents. In comparison, starch content was not affected or tended to increase relative to wild type. The reduction in all amino acids except aspartate in the antisense plants is consistent with the properties of amino acid permeases (AAPs) found in heterologous systems. The results demonstrate an important role for StAAP1 in long-distance transport of amino acids and highlight the importance of plasma membrane transport for nutrient distribution in plants. [source] Evaluating soil rhizobacteria for their ability to enhance plant growth and tuber yield in potatoANNALS OF APPLIED BIOLOGY, Issue 2 2010A. Oswald The objectives of this study were to identify promising microorganisms to improve potato productivity in low-input systems of tropical highlands and to compare results from in vitro, greenhouse and field experiments to advance the development of a screening method for rhizobacteria and develop an efficient assessment of their effect on plant growth in field conditions. A total of 150 bacterial strains were screened in vitro, in greenhouse and field trials. The series of experiments confirmed the plant growth-promoting ability of a range of rhizobacteria. Although in vitro and greenhouse results were promising, the field experiment showed variability and the results require further verification. The in vitro tests might have limited value for screening as no correlation could be found between in vitro tests and pot trial results. However, trials in controlled conditions produced insights into the mechanisms causing better plant growth in potato, such as early tuberisation, fast development of leaf area and probably greater photosynthetic rates. [source] Yield and cooking qualities of somaclonal variants of cv. Russet Burbank selected for resistance to common scab disease of potatoANNALS OF APPLIED BIOLOGY, Issue 2 2010C.R. Wilson We previously obtained somaclonal variants of the important French fry processing cultivar Russet Burbank with significantly enhanced resistance to common scab disease. In this study we have shown the commercial merit of a proportion of these variants through comparison of relative yield and tuber quality with the parent cultivar Russet Burbank. Whilst we showed a weak negative correlation between tuber yield (as assessed by weight of tubers per plant) and relative disease resistance within selected variants, we identified several with equivalent yields to the parent cultivar. Furthermore, two disease-resistant variants (TC-RB8 and NZ-24B) consistently yielded more tuber mass than the parent. The majority of our Russet Burbank variants showed equivalent tuber quality characteristics (occurrence of defects, tuber specific gravity and dry matter content, and flesh colour) and cooking qualities (fry colour and presence of dark end defects) to the parent cultivar. Independent testing by a commercial French fry processor confirmed these quality characteristics. We present data demonstrating that highly common scab disease-resistant somaclonal variants of Russet Burbank have commercially acceptable tuber yield and quality characteristics, comparable to the industry standard and parent Russet Burbank cultivar. We also demonstrate the value of in vitro cell selection techniques for potato cultivar improvement. [source] Influence of minisett sizes on dry matter accumulation and fresh tuber yield of white Guinea yam (Dioscorea rotundata)ANNALS OF APPLIED BIOLOGY, Issue 2 2009K.E. Law-Ogbomo Abstract Studies were conducted in 2005 and 2006 at Irrua, Nigeria, to determine the performance of various sizes of minisetts of Dioscorea rotundata cv. ,Obiaoturugo' evaluated for size and yield of yield matter and seed yams. These trials involved a macrosett (250 g) and six minisett sizes (25, 30, 35, 40, 45 and 50 g) in a randomised block design with four replicates. The results indicated that larger minisetts had higher degree of field establishment, foliation, leaf area index, total dry weight, percentage of leaf dry matter and net assimilation rate. These growth parameters influenced higher crop growth rate, which was responsible for higher fresh tuber yield. The macrosett's fresh tuber yield was the greatest (20.48 t ha,1) but had the least multiplication ratio (8.19). The greatest multiplication ratio was obtained from 30-g setts. [source] Cybrids and tetrad sterility for developing true potato seed hybridsANNALS OF APPLIED BIOLOGY, Issue 2 2003ALI M GOLMIRZAIE Summary Potato cybrids result from the fusion between cytoplasm and nuclear gene donors. Such genetic materials are an alternative means to broaden the breeding pool by non-sexual gene transfer. Tetrad pollen sterility provides also another source of male sterility with some potential for true potato seed breeding. The objective of this research was to investigate cybrid-derived offspring for both agronomic and reproductive characteristics in two contrasting Peruvian locations, and to examine new exotic germplasm for tetrad sterility, with the aim of broadening the breeding pool available at the Centro Internacional de la Papa (CIP). The cybrids were derived from fusions between Y-245.7, a clone with tetrad sterility, and Atzimba. These cybrids were crossed with selected male parents from the CIP breeding population, and their hybrid offspring were tested in La Molina (coastal desert) and Huancayo (cool highlands). In addition, other clones with tetrad sterility were also crossed with selected testers to determine their breeding value. There were significant differences for tuber yield, style length, and berry number among the hybrid offspring, and the genotype by environment interaction was significant for tuber yield and berry number. The top 25% highest yielding cybrid-derived offspring across both locations showed the same tuber yield although they were significantly different for some of the reproductive characteristics. With the exception of one cybrid, the others did not exhibit segregation for tetrad sterility in their hybrid offspring, which were male fertile. However, the offspring derived from crosses between other sources of tetrad sterility and the same testers all showed tetrad sterility, and some of them had outstanding tuber yield at La Molina. The lack of segregation for tetrad sterility in these new crosses suggests that the non-cybrid, male sterile, female parents are triplex or quadriplex for the Tr nuclear locus, which interacts with a sensitive cytoplasm (e.g. Trs from S. verrucosum or S. stoloniferum) to produce tetrad sterility in potato. [source] Engineered native pathways for high kaempferol and caffeoylquinate production in potatoPLANT BIOTECHNOLOGY JOURNAL, Issue 9 2008Caius M. Rommens Summary Flavonols and caffeoylquinates represent important groups of phenolic antioxidants with health-promoting activities. The genetic potential of potato (Solanum tuberosum) to produce high levels of these dietary compounds has not been realized in currently available commodity varieties. In this article, it is demonstrated that tuber-specific expression of the native and slightly modified MYB transcription factor gene StMtf1M activates the phenylpropanoid biosynthetic pathway. Compared with untransformed controls, transgenic tubers contained fourfold increased levels of caffeoylquinates, including chlorogenic acid (CGA) (1.80 mg/g dry weight), whilst also accumulating various flavonols and anthocyanins. Subsequent impairment of anthocyanin biosynthesis through silencing of the flavonoid-3,,5,-hydroxylase (F3,5,h) gene resulted in the accumulation of kaempferol-rut (KAR) to levels that were approximately 100-fold higher than in controls (0.12 mg/g dry weight). The biochemical changes were associated with increased expression of both the CGA biosynthetic hydroxycinnamoyl-CoA quinate hydroxycinnamoyl transferase (Hqt) gene and the upstream chorismate mutase (Cm) and prephenate dehydratase (Pdh) genes. Field trials indicated that transgenic lines produced similar tuber yields to the original potato variety Bintje. Processed products of these lines retained most of their phenylpropanoids and were indistinguishable from untransformed controls in texture and taste. [source] | ||||||||||