The Effect of Microtuber Size and Phosphate Biofertilizer on Growth and Tuber Yield of Sante Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) Cultivar

Document Type : Research Article

Authors

• N Gharehbaghli ¹
• A Sepehri ²

¹ Crop and Horticultural Science Research Department, Hamedan Agricultural and Natural Resources Research and Education Center, AREEO, Hamedan, Iran

² Department of Plant Production and Genetics, Faculty of Agriculture, Bu-Ali Sina University, Hamedan, Iran

10.22067/jcesc.2025.93219.1390

Abstract

Introduction
Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) is a globally significant crop whose productivity is substantially influenced by seed tuber quality and nutrient management. The Sante variety, prized for its disease resistance and processing qualities, shows particular sensitivity to these factors. Recent studies highlight that seed tuber size is a critical determinant of early growth vigor, influencing both carbohydrate reserves and meristematic potential. Larger tubers (>20 mm in diameter) generally exhibit 30–40% higher initial growth rates due to their greater sprouting capacity and faster establishment of photosynthetic activity. Concurrently, phosphate biofertilizers containing Pseudomonas and Bacillus strains have shown remarkable efficacy in potato systems, improving phosphorus availability by 50-70% through organic acid secretion and phosphatase activity. The interaction between tuber size and biofertilization remains underexplored, particularly regarding source-sink relationships during tuber initiation. Preliminary evidence suggests synergistic effects, where larger tubers' inherent advantages are amplified by biofertilizer-induced nutrient mobilization. This study investigates these dynamics in Sante potatoes, hypothesizing that optimal tuber size combined with dual-phase biofertilizer application will maximize yield components through: (1) enhanced canopy development, (2) improved phosphorus use efficiency, and (3) superior photoassimilate partitioning. The findings will advance precision management strategies for seed potato production systems.
Materials and Methods
A field experiment using the Sante potato cultivar was conducted in a factorial design in a randomized complete block design with three replications in the 1401 crop year. The microtubers were produced in the previous year through tissue culture and potting in greenhouse cultivation. The treatments included tuber size at three levels up to 20, 20-25 and 25-30 mm and application of Barvar 2 phosphate biofertilizer at three levels without phosphate biofertilizer (control), one application of phosphate biofertilizer (at the time of planting by dipping the tubers with biofertilizer) and two applications of phosphate biofertilizer at the time of planting and 4-6 leaves. Land preparation operations included semi-deep ploughing in spring and two stages of vertical disking. The seeds were sown in rows and ridges with row spacing of 75 cm and plant spacing of 20 cm. Each plot consisted of 6 rows, each 5 m in length. Irrigation was carried out regularly and according to the plant's water requirements during the growth period. Weed control was carried out manually. During the growth period, sampling of experimental plots was carried out every 10 days by randomly picking 5 plants from the assigned rows, and leaf area, leaf dry matter and total dry matter were measured to evaluate growth indices. At the time of harvest, the number of stems, number of tubers, tuber dry matter, and total tuber yield were measured for each plot, and the harvest index was calculated. SAS version 9.4 software was used to analyse the data, and Microsoft Excel software was used to create graphs.
Result and Discussion
The results indicated that larger microtubers (25–30 mm) significantly (p < 0.01) enhanced growth and yield parameters. Total biomass (6,201 kg ha⁻¹), number of tubers per plant (4.8), and tuber yield (28,337 kg ha⁻¹) increased by 41%, 23%, and 63%, respectively, compared to smaller microtubers (15–20 mm). Two applications of phosphate biofertilizer also increased leaf area index (27.58%), tuber dry matter (33.19%), and harvest index (5.69%) compared to the control. The interaction of these two factors showed that the combination of 25-30 mm microtubers with two applications of biofertilizer produced the highest tuber yield (31524 kg ha^-1) and harvest index (89.03%).
Conclusion
This study investigated the effect of potato tuber size and phosphate biofertilizer application on the growth and yield of the new potato variety Sante. The results showed that tuber size and phosphate biofertilizer application had a significant effect on potato growth and yield indices. Larger tubers (25 to 30 mm) provided more energy for germination and early growth due to greater nutrient storage, which led to faster leaf formation and increased leaf area index (LAI). Also, applying phosphate biofertilizer twice had a greater effect on leaf area, stem number, tuber number, tuber yield, tuber dry matter, and total biomass compared to applying phosphate biofertilizer once and without fertilizer. The interaction between tuber size and phosphate biofertilizer was also significant for all measured traits. The highest yield and plant growth were observed in the combined treatment of 25-30 mm microtubers and two applications of phosphate biofertilizer. These results indicate that the use of larger microtubers, along with optimal use of phosphate biofertilizer can be used as an effective strategy to improve potato growth and yield under field conditions. Finally, this study emphasizes that choosing the appropriate size of microtubers and properly managing the use of phosphate biofertilizer can help increase productivity and sustainability in potato production. These findings can be used as a guide for farmers and researchers to optimize cultivation conditions and increase potato yield.

Keywords

• Biological yield
• Harvest index
• Leaf area
• Seed tuber

Main Subjects

• Crop yield

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Authors retain the copyright. This is an open access article distributed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0)

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