Magnesium-influenced seed potato development and yield

Abstract

Seed potato production in systems that provide higher amounts of planted material improves the potato production chain. Planting in a pot or hydroponic system with adequate plant nutrition may increase the seed potato yield. Among the nutrients, magnesium (Mg) has a role in a range of metabolic processes and biochemical reactions in plants, such as chlorophyll formation. Thus, the adequate supply of this nutrient is of fundamental importance. The study aimed to evaluate the effect of Mg dose on morphological characteristics of the plant and seed potato yield in two cultivation systems. Two experiments were installed simultaneously in a greenhouse. In experiment I, the plants were grown in a pot with organic substrate. In experiment II, the plants were cultivated in a hydroponic system, and five doses of Mg were evaluated. No other characteristics evaluated at 21 DAE showed significant response to Mg dose in both experiments, except for Mg content in the fourth leaf dry mass. The doses providing the highest seed potato yield, in units per plant, in experiments I and II were, respectively, 0.0 g dm⁻³ of MgSO₄ and 0.96 mmol L⁻¹ Mg²⁺. At these doses, the Mg content in the fourth leaf dry mass were 24.4 and 11.0 g kg⁻¹, respectively. The highest seed potato yield was obtained in the control (without Mg application) in experiment I and with the dose of 0.96 mmol L⁻¹ in experiment II.

Keywords:

• hydroponic system
• macronutrient
• Solanum tuberosum L
• substrate

Acknowledgments

The authors thank the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq), the Foundation for Research Support of the State of Minas Gerais (FAPEMIG) and Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior - Brazil (CAPES) Finance Code 001, for financial support.