scholarly journals Influence of Phosphorus Fertilizer on “Ware” Potato Production in Acid Soils in Kenya

2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 118
Author(s):  
Evans Mutange Akoto ◽  
Caleb O. Othieno ◽  
Julius O. Ochuodho

One of the major challenges facing potato (Solanum Tuberosum L) production in Kenya is low and declining yield. This trend is caused by several factors which include low quality and quantity of seed, climate change, inadequate extension services, pests and diseases and more importantly low and declining soil fertility, particularly phosphorus (KEPHIS, 2016 and Karanja et al., 2014). Unfortunately, the current phosphorus fertilizer rate recommendation available for “ware” potato production in Kenya is “blanket” or general (90 kg phosphorus ha-1) and has not been updated for a long time to address the declining soil fertility. This prevents proper utilization of phosphorus fertilizers in achieving optimal production of “ware” potatoes. Therefore, this study investigated influence of different rates of phosphorus (TSP) fertilizer on “ware” potato yield and quality in three acidic (pH ≤ 5.8) test sites: Lari, Ainabkoi and Saboti sub Counties. Two varieties, Unica and Shangi, were tested. The field experiment was a split plot arrangement in Randomised Complete Block Design (RCBD) with six treatments (0 N & 0 P), 0, 30, 60, 90 and 120 kg ha-1 phosphorus, replicated three times. Data collected included weight, quantity and quality of tubers. The data was analysed using analysis of variance (ANOVA) at 5 % confidence levels with General Statistics (GENSTAT) and excel soft wares. Results indicated that phosphorus fertilizer influenced “ware” potato yield. At Saboti application of 120 and 90 kg phosphorus ha-1 for Shangi and Unica resulted in highest “ware” yield of 19.6 and 40.2 t ha-1, respectively. At Ainabkoi application of 120 kg ha-1 phosphorus produced highest “ware” potato yields of 10.7 t ha-1 and 26.8 t ha-1 of Shangi and Unica, respectively. At Lari, application of 90 and 120 kg ha-1 phosphorus produced highest “ware” potato yield of 7.0 t ha-1 and 17.5 t ha-1 for Shangi and Unica, respectively. During the season, there was a build-up of soil available phosphorus. Thus, there is need for farmers to test their soil at the beginning of every potato growing season.

Author(s):  
Pyone Pyone AYE ◽  
Pechrada PINJAI ◽  
Saowanuch TAWORNPRUEK

Phosphorus solubilizing bacteria (PSB) can increase soil phosphorus (P) availability and improve plant growth, yield, and phosphorus content of several crops. The experiment was conducted to evaluate the effect of PSB on soil available phosphorus, growth, and yield of sugarcane at field conditions. Kosakonia radicincitans (PSB1) and Bacillus subtilis (PSB2) were applied with two different sources of phosphorus fertilizers: Di-ammonium phosphate (DAP) and rock phosphate (RP). The application of PSB with phosphorus fertilizers enhanced the yield from 17.03 to 38.42 % over no application of fertilizer. It also increased the percentage of commercial cane sugar percent (CCS %) from 4.8 to 19.96 % over control. The application of PSB2 with DAP showed effective results in available phosphorus content in the soil and yield of sugarcane. The PSB population and the available phosphorus contents were higher in treatments when phosphorus was given partly through RP and DAP than the control. The application of phosphorus fertilizer and PSB increased phosphorus fractions in the soil. The addition of phosphorus fertilizer to soil increased all the inorganic phosphorus fractions in soil. The treatments with PSB resulted in statistical differences in total phosphorus concentrations in the soil. The application of PSB with RP (T6, T7, and T8) showed the highest weight among the treatment at the harvesting time. The yield of sugarcane was highest in the application of PSB2 with either DAP or RP (T4 and T7). HIGHLIGHTS Evaluate the effect of Phosphate Solubilizing Bacteria (PSB) (Kosakonia radicincitans and Bacillus subtills) comminated with two different phosphorus (di-ammonium phosphate (DAP) and rock phosphate (RP) fertilizers on the changes in the soil available phosphorus level and sugarcane growth at Sa Kaeo Province, Thailand The application of P fertilizer and PSB can increase the inorganic P fractions in the soil and increased the cane yield over NPK without PSB The PSB application either single or co-inoculation of PSBs increased the average cane more than 13 % to over control


Kultivasi ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jajang Sauman Hamdani ◽  
Tessa Prima Dewi ◽  
Wawan Sutari

Sari. Kentang termasuk jenis sayuran komersial bernilai tinggi yang dapat dijadikan sebagai pangan alternatif. Rendahnya ketersediaan benih kentang  dapat berpengaruh terhadap produksi kentang. Terbatasnya lahan penanaman kentang di dataran tinggi sehingga diperlukan ekstensifikasi di dataran medium melalui rekayasa media tumbuh dan hormon tumbuh yang bisa mengurangi efek negatif penanaman kentang di dataran medium.  Percobaan ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui interaksi antara komposisi media tanam dengan waktu aplikasi zat pengatur tumbuh terhadap pertumbuhan dan hasil benih kentang G2 kultivar Medians di dataran medium Jatinangor. Percobaan dilaksanakan di Kebun Percobaan Ciparanje, Fakultas Pertanian, Universitas Padjadjaran, Jatinangor. Rancangan percobaan yang digunakan yaitu Rancangan Acak Kelompok Faktorial. Faktor pertama adalah komposisi media tanam dan faktor kedua adalah waktu aplikasi zat pengatur tumbuh sitokinin dan paclobutrazol. Hasil percobaan menunjukkan bahwa tidak terjadi interaksi komposisi media tanam dengan waktu aplikasi zat pengatur tumbuh terhadap pertumbuhan dan hasil benih kentang G2. Komposisi media tanah, kompos, arang sekam, dan cocopeat (perbandingan ( ) 1:1:1:1) menunjukkan tinggi tanaman, luas daun, bobot kering tanaman, jumlah ubi dan bobot ubi per tanaman tertinggi. Waktu aplikasi 20 hari setelah tanam (HST) sitokinin dan 40 HST paclobutrazol dapat menekan tinggi tanaman namun menghasilkan jumlah ubi dan bobot ubi per tanaman tertinggi. Kata Kunci: kentang, media, sitokinin, paclobutrazol, dataran  Abstract. Potatoes are a high-value commercial vegetable that can be used as an alternative food. The low availability of potato seeds affect potato production. The limited area of potatoes in the highlands caused extensification in the medium land is needed through engineering of growing media and growth hormones. It probably can reduce the negative effects of planting potatoes on the medium lands of Jatinangor. The experiment was carried out at the Ciparanje Station, Faculty of Agriculture, Padjadjaran University, Jatinangor. The experiment was using Randomized Block Design with factorial treatment.  The first factor was the growing media compositions, while the second factor was the times of growth regulating substances application. The experimental results showed that there was no interaction effect of the growing media compositions and times of growth regulating substances application to growth and yield of the G2 potato seed. Compositions of soil, compost, husk charcoal, and cocopeat (1:1:1:1) showed plant height, leaf area, dry weight, numbers of tubers, and weights of tubers per plant were higher than other treatments. The times of application 20 days after planting (DAP) cytokinin and 40 DAP paclobutrazol suppressed plant height, however it produce numbers and weights of tubers per plant were higher. Keywords: potatoes, growing media, cytokinin, paclobutrazol, medium land


2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 80-86
Author(s):  
Hillary M.O. Otieno ◽  
Edna K. Mageto

Potato productivity has stagnated and remained low due to, among other causes, increasing soil infertility and poor nutrient management strategies. To avert this situation, it is essential to have a better understanding of potato response to nitrogen and potassium nutrients. Like other crops, potatoes require an adequate and balanced supply of nutrients for better growth and tuber yields. To achieve that, it is essential to conduct an extensive soil analyses for the entire farm. However, this process is expensive for most resource-constrained farmers. Moreover, the current recommendations used in the region are generic and focuses more on nitrogen than potassium. Hence, there is a need to focus on readily and freely available information for enhanced decision making. The assumption that the soils in the region are fertile and can supply adequate potassium is no longer valid, and now necessitates more actions such as adopting integrated soil fertility and precise application of nutrients within the 4R principles. All these aspects are well covered in this article. We believe the information presented in this manuscript is valuable and give a better foundation for future research and recommendations in potato production.


2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 101
Author(s):  
Evans Mutange Akoto ◽  
Caleb O. Othieno ◽  
Julius O. Ochuodho

One of the major challenges facing potato (Solanum Tuberosum L) production in Kenya is the inadequate supply of high-quality seed. The required amount of potato seed in Kenya is about 70,000 tones annually but, only 1 % is available. Otherwise, farmers use low quality farm saved seed (KEPHIS, 2016). A major contributor to this situation is low and declining soil fertility, particularly phosphorus, among other challenges. Unfortunately, there is no available phosphorus fertilizer rate recommendation for seed potato production in Kenya. This hinders economic utilization of phosphorus fertilizers to achieve optimal production of quality potato seed in Kenya where its deficiencies are dominant. Therefore, this study investigated influence of different rates of phosphorus fertilizer on seed potato tuber yield and quality in three acidic (pH ≤ 5.8) test sites: Lari, Ainabkoi and Saboti sub Counties. Unica and Shangi varieties were tested. The field experiment was a split plot arrangement in Randomised Complete Block Design (RCBD) with six treatments (0 N & 0 P), 0, 30, 60, 90 and 120 kg ha-1 phosphorus, replicated three times. Data collected included tuber weight, number of tubers, tuber grade, number of eyes per tuber, tuber specific density and final germination percentage. To monitor soil nutrient dynamics, soil pH, soil available phosphorus, total nitrogen, total carbon, potassium, calcium, magnesium, copper, iron, zinc, sodium and exchangeable acidity (Lari only) were determined at planting while available phosphorus and potato tuber phosphorus were determined at harvesting. Data was statistically analysed using ANOVA at 5 % confidence levels with General Statistics (GENSTAT) and excel softwares. Results indicated that phosphorus rate significantly influenced seed tuber yield in the test sites. At Saboti, (0N & 0P) and no phosphorus application treatments for Shangi and Unica resulted in the highest seed tuber yield of 33.7 t ha-1 and 33.2 t ha-1, respectively. At Ainabkoi, application of 60 kg ha-1 and 30 kg ha-1 phosphorus produced the highest seed tuber yields of 20.0 t ha-1 and 18.9 t ha-1 of Shangi and Unica, respectively. In Lari, application of 60 kg ha-1 and 90 kg ha-1 phosphorus produced the highest seed tuber yields of 19.0 t ha-1 and 10.4 t ha-1 of Shangi and Unica, respectively. Unica had better final germination percentage than Shangi. During the season, there was a build-up of soil available phosphorus. Thus, there is need for farmers to test their soils at the onset of every potato season.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tijjani Ahmadu ◽  
Adamu Abdullahi ◽  
Khairulmazmi Ahmad

Among food crops in terms of consumption, potato ranks fourth, most important and valuable crop worldwide in terms of production and area harvested after maize, wheat and rice. In the coming years, potato production must keep pace with global population expansion nutritiously and sustainably which can partially be achieved by reducing the yield losses caused by the destructive pest and disease activities to the crop. The challenge of 70–80% total microbial crop yield loss posed by pathogens must be addressed for sustainable potato production in order to properly alleviate the global starvation problem. Potato as a food security crop can help to achieve the four food security requirements: food availability, quality, accessibility and stability. Health benefits of potato have shown the presence of phytochemicals as well as resistant starch which serve as anticancer and antidiabetic. The role of potato in the global food security should not be over emphasized, hence in this chapter we want to give an overview on the global hunger and food security at present, and the role played by potato as a food security crop. In addition, potato yield losses caused by pests and diseases especially phytopathogens, their etiology and the role of crop protection in sustainable potato production to alleviate global starvation problem will be discussed.


2019 ◽  
Vol 2019 ◽  
pp. 1-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Solomon Endris

Low soil phosphorous level is among several constraints limiting crop productivity in southwestern Ethiopia. The dominant soil types in the region are acidic nitosols that are low in plant-available phosphorus. Most farmers cultivate maize with minimal external inputs and hence result in suboptimal yield levels. The effect of applying Tithonia biomass and phosphorus fertilizer on the agronomic efficiency of phosphorus and yield of maize was therefore investigated in a randomized complete block design with three replications. Tithonia (Tithonia diversifolia) biomass and Triple Superphosphate (TSP) were used as organic and inorganic sources of phosphorus, respectively. Significant treatment differences (P<0.01) were observed for most of the parameters studied including agronomic efficiency, partial factor productivity (PFP), and grain yield. Agronomic phosphorus use efficiency increased from 26.3 at the sole TSP to 163 at treatment 7, a staggering 520% increment when combined with Tithonia biomass. Similarly, PFP of phosphorus increased from 169.1 to 324.8. At the same time, 53% increment of the grain yield was recorded over the control. Although applying the highest Tithonia biomass alone gave the highest grain yield, application of just 50% of the highest rate of Tithonia biomass and TSP looks more appealing to smallholder maize producers in the region. The result therefore indicated that Tithonia biomass could be utilized in smallholder maize production system as a source of plant nutrients such as phosphorus; it also emphasized the need to allot more resources and attention in exploring locally available and cheap sources of plant nutrients which could augment crop productivity amid the mounting financial challenges faced by farmers in the region.


2015 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 11
Author(s):  
Daniel Zeru Zelelew ◽  
Biniam Mesfin Ghebreslassie

Poor soil fertility and lack of high yielding certified varieties are of the major potato production tribulations in Eritrea. Top soils are continually removed due to water run-off and thus soil fertility and productivity has declined as a result. An experiment was designed to assess the response of potato varieties to different levels of potassium application at Hamelmalo Agricultural College, Eritrea. Three varieties (Ajiba, Zafira and Picasso) and five potassium levels (0, 75, 150, 225 and 300 kg K<sub>2</sub>O/ha) along with all possible interactions were used. Experimental design following factorial Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) in three replications was employed. Data was collected on yield and tuber quality parameters. The result of the study indicated that there were significant variations in the performances of varieties in terms of yield and quality parameters in which Ajiba was found to be more responsive and high yielding. Tuber number, tuber diameter, tuber weight per plant, total yield, total soluble solids, specific gravity and tuber moisture content showed significant differences due to the application of potassium. As a result, the highest tuber weight (1.14 kg/plant) and yield (49.38 tones/ha) were recorded from Ajiba treated with 300 kg K<sub>2</sub>O/ha. The result further revealed that there is a promising profit return by investing more on potassium application upto 300 kg K<sub>2</sub>O/ha. It is, thus, recommended that potassium fertilizers should be introduced to optimize productivity in Hamelmalo area, Eritrea.


2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 228-240
Author(s):  
Manoj Bhatta ◽  
Bhimsen Shrestha ◽  
Ananta Raj Devkota ◽  
Khem Raj Joshi ◽  
Sabin Bhattarai ◽  
...  

A field experiment was conducted from February to June, 2020 at Bhatkanda, Dadeldhura, Nepal to assess the effectiveness of plastic mulches in potato production. The experiment was laid out in Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with four replications comprising of five treatments viz: T1: white plastic mulch (white on black colored), T2: silver plastic mulch (silver on black colored), T3: perforated black plastic mulch, T4: black plastic mulch and T5: control (without mulch). Results revealed that the black plastic mulch significantly increased the rate of emergence while perforated black plastic exhibited highest values of all other studied growth parameters, yield components and quality parameters. The highest marketable tuber yield was obtained in perforated black plastic (6.05 kg/m2) followed by silver plastic (5.62 kg/m2), white plastic (5.46 kg/m2), black plastic (5.14 kg/m2) and lowest marketable tuber yield was obtained in control condition (4.07 kg/m2). Similarly, temperature difference between controlled and mulched condition at 15 cm depth of soil was observed up to 2.8°C with its highest value in black plastic mulch and lowest in control condition. The perforated black plastic mulch was found most economical with maximum value of net return (NRs. 1904.31 thousands/ha) and B: C ratio (5.83). This study concludes that the use of perforated black plastic mulch is most economical with optimum plant growth and yield, producing best quality potatoes under climatic condition of Dadeldhura, Nepal.


Author(s):  
E. O. Azu Donatus ◽  
B. A. Essien ◽  
O. U. Nwanja ◽  
P. E. Nweke

The present study investigated the combined effect of rice husk dust (RHD) (0.1.2.3.4 and 5 ton ha-1) and NPK 10:10:10 fertilizer (0, 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 ton ha-1) arranged factorially in Randomized Complete Block Design(RCBD)on selected soil fertility indices (pH, organic carbon, organic matter, total nitrogen, available phosphorus, exchangeable bases, exchangeable acidity and effective cation exchange capacity) and growth parameters of Jatropha (number of leaves, plant height, number of branches and stem girth) in an ultisol of southeastern Nigeria. Results showed significant (P<0.05) improvement in all soil chemical properties and growth parameters of plant compared to control which had no treatment. However, the effects varied with treatment levels and interactions. While the effects increased with rate of application, interactions consistently showed superior effect on all parameters studied. Thus, combining rice husk dust (RHD) and NPK may increase the soil fertility and growth of Jatropha. Treatments combination of5tonha-1 RHD and 3tonha-1 NPK and 5tonha-1 RHD and 5tonha-1 NPK relatively gave the most appreciable result in soil chemical properties and growth of Jatropha respectively, thus are recommended.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Jama-Rodzenska ◽  
Grzegorz Janik ◽  
Amadeusz Walczak ◽  
Katarzyna Adamczewska-Sowinska ◽  
Jozef Sowinski

AbstractThis study aims to determine the effects of differences in variety and irrigations levels on potato yield (appropriate humidity, temperature, shading the plants from the sun if necessary) on potato yield in greenhouse conditions. Functions of potato production with respect to water use were developed for five dates of measurements of plant growth, in relation to the various vegetation phases. On the basis of potato vegetation phases, the potato water demand was determined. An experiment was conducted using the randomized sub-block method. The first order factor were the two varieties of potato that were grown under drip irrigation with three water regimes as a second factor experiment: level 1 (pF 2.7), level 2 (pF 2.5) and level 3 (pF 2.2). The variety had a significant effect on the weight of potato tubers. The irrigation level had only a significant effect on the total potato biomass. The potato harvest date had a significant effect on both of the examined treatments. The growth dynamics of the aboveground part and potato tubers were the highest in conditions of constant level 1. Regardless of the variety studied, on level 3 caused a reduction in potato biomass production.The highest water consumption was observed during the tuber potato growth period to flowering. The values were varied from 0.39 l/pot day level 1 (in both investigated cultivars) to 0.99 l/ pot/day (humidity level 3 for Julinka cultivar) in July. The most intensive increase in water consumption was observed at the level 3. The average W index of the average daily water dose calculated for Denar cultivar amounted 0.40 l day−1 in the first period (O1) to 0.79 l day−1 in the fifth period (O5) and for Julinka cultivar 0.49 l day−1 (O1) to 0.92 l day−1 (O5). Stress due to water shortage and/or excessive levels of water in the soil negatively influenced the yield of potato tuber. Potato varieties reacted differently to soil water content.


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