The influence of the mother tuber on growth and tuberization of potatoes.

Abstract

Sprouts separated from mother tubers showed under certain conditions (e.g. in the late variety Alpha under long-day) good foliage growth comparable with that of plants with a mother tuber; under other conditions (e.g. in the early variety Eersteling under short-day) foliage growth produced by such sprouts was relatively weak. Root development of the sprouts determined to a large degree the foliage growth and tuber yield. Experiments with Alpha showed that no direct or indirect influence of a mother tuber or inducing conditions (short-day) are necessary for tuberization, indicating that tuberization is a normal phase in the development of potato plants. In these experiments. plants from sprouts, cuttings of the 1st generation taken from these sproutlings and cuttings of the 2nd generation taken from the cuttings of the 1st generation, produced tubers under non-inducing conditions (long-day).-A.G.G.H. (Abstract retrieved from CAB Abstracts by CABI’s permission)