POTATO

Scientific Name: Solanum tuberosum

Family: Solanaceae
Origin and History :
 The center of origin of potato is the central region of South America.
 Evidence indicates that potatoes were cultivated for centuries by South American Indians and
the tubers were used as common food.
 The Spanish people brought potato from Peru to Spain in 1565.
 Sir Francis Drake probably brought it to England around 1586.
 Potato was introduced to India from Europe in the beginning of the seventeenth century,
probably by the Portuguese
Area and Distribution:

 China ranks first in area and production followed by Russian Federation, Ukraine, Poland and
India. India ranks fifth in area and production.
 Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal are the major potato producer states in the country.
 Potato ranks first in share of area as well as in production.
 India occupies → 2 nd Position in area & production in the world.
 The China → World leader in P’n (45.7 MT/ha).
 U.P is the major producer of potato (24 MT/ha).
 The highest productivity is in west bengal (24 mt/ha) followed by Gujarat (22.6 MT/ha).
 India is the second largest potato producing country in the world. During the year 2015-16,
India produced 43.41 million tones of potato from an area of 2.11 million ha with an average
productivity of 20.6 t/ha.
 Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Bihar, Assam, Punjab and Gujarat are the major potato producing
states of the country.

Chromosome No: The commonly cultivated potato (Solanum tuberosum) is a self-compatible

polysomic tetraploid (2n = 4x = 48), which shows tetrasomic inheritance and inbreeding depression
after continuous self-fertilizing.

Climate:
 Potato as a summer crop in hills and winter crop in tropical & sub tropical area.
 Optimum temperature 15 to 20°C
 Minimum night temp is of great significance for tuberization & yield.
 Night temperature 200C is favorable and Night temp. > 20°C Do not tuberize.
 At 30°C → tuberization stop.
 For best yields, it needs long day condition during growth & short day condition during
tuberization.
 Long photoperiod → Promotes haulm growth but delay tuberization.
 Short photoperiod → Reduces haulm growth but early tuberization.
Soil:
 Potato can be grown in all types of soil except saline and alkaline soils.
 Light, well drained, Loamy and sandy loam soils, rich in O.M. are most suitable for cultivation,
of potato.
 With adequate fertilization, grown even in sand.
  For better tuber yield soil should be loose and friable with good drainage and aeration.
 Heavy textured or wet undrained not suitable for potato.
 pH 6.0 to 8.0 is considered to be the best.
 Excellent Potato crop is grown under river-bed system of cultivation in Deesa (B.K., Gujarat).
Breeding Goals/Selection of Variety:
 To select the variety Healthy, Earliness Free from disease (Common scab, ring).
 High tuber yielding.
 Resistant to biotic & abiotic stress.
 Colour lusture & shape of tuber is even.
 Better eating, keeping & storage capacity.
 Thermopoto insensitive.
 Responsiveness to fertilizer.
 Suitable for processing & export.
 High vit-c, protein, DM content and Low sugar content → processing
Planting Methods/Soil Preparation:
 Wet method or by using ridge & furrow method.
 Apply recommended O.M. @ 25 to 30 t/ha + 1 t castor cake at the time of soil preparation.
 Maintain the 5 cm distance between fertilizer and piece of tuber
Planting time and distance :
 Around 15th November (Oct-Nov) and Too early or too late → tuber yield less.
 Planting Manual → 50 x 20 cm, seed size 20 to 40g, seed rate 3 to 3.3 t/ha.
 Mechanical → 60 x 20 cm, seed size 20 to 40 g, seed rate 2.5 t/ha.
 Also in the field: 40 to 45 cm × 10 to15 cm. and in the riverbed: 20 × 20 cm
Seed Rate, Methods of Sowing and Spacing:
The seed requirements for a hectare on the basis of seed size are given below:
Large size- 25-30 q/ha; Medium size- 15-20 q/ha; Small size- 10-15 q/ha; Out tubers- 8-12 q/h2:-'
Potato is planted mainly by two methods:
1. Ridge and Furrow Method:
In this method, the ridges are prepared. The length of the ridges depends on slope of the plot.
Too long ridges and furrows arc not supplied with irrigation water conveniently. The potato
tubers are planted on is let into furrows.
2. Flat Bed Method:
In this method, the whole plot is divided into beds of convenient length and width. The
shallow furrows are opened and potato tubers are planted at recommended distance. The
tubers are covered with the original soil of furrows. When the germination is completed and
plants become 10 to 12 cm height, earthing should be done. Suitable plant spacing in relation
to potato seed grades are given below:
Botanical Description:
Stem:
Stem is consisted of stem, runners and tuber. It grows as a single stem for few time and then
divided into branches.
1-9 suckers are emerged in one plant.
Stem divides into 3 categories based on height of the plant and flowering
short (less than 45cm)
Moderate (45-60 cm)
tall (greater than 60c.
 Bud:
Mainly two parts
Growth of buds is affected by the storage conditions of seed potato.
Basel parts are at under the soil and therefore both runners and tubers are developed.
Leaf:
Potato has compound leaves.
It has prominent mid rib and it is also divided into leaflets.
Leaf I important to identify variety.
Flower:
Flower is an inflorescence axis is first divided into two.
White and purple colour petals are closely arranged and made a corolla.
Tuber:
This is a modernized stem or an expanded runer.
It has eyes same as a general stem.
One or more buds may be in one eye.
Tubers not only store food as well as act as a planting material.
Seed Plot Technique:
 Seed Plot Technique is discovered by Pushkarnath, 1967.
 The basic information on build up of aphid population in various regions made it possible to
develop Seed Plot Technique for growing healthy seed potato in sub tropical plains of India
under low aphid periods.
 Seed plot technique in brief can be described as raising the crop during a period, when aphid
population is very low after taking pre-cautions such as use of insecticides against aphids,
periodical rouging of mosaic (virus) affected plants and finally dehaulming the crop before
aphids population attained the critical level of 20 aphids per 100 compound leaves.
True Potato Seed Technique:
 Traditionally, seed tubers have been used to plant potato crop. This practice, especially for
developing countries is a major limiting factor because seed tuber represents 40-70% of a crop
production cost. (by Ramanujam in1957).
 Two tonnes of costly, perishable seed tubers are needed to plant one hectare.
 The seed producing areas are located in the north of the country where seed tuber production
is taken up during low aphid incidence.
 Hence, the seeds from north are to be transported over long distances to other potato
growing areas leading to escalation cost.
 In some areas adequate cold storage facilities are also lacking.
 These problems have led the development of an alternate technology, which envisages the use
of botanical seed or the true potato seed (TPS).
Advantage of True Potato Seed:
 By using TPS, the entire tuber harvest would become available for table purpose.
 Cost of seed would be cheaper as very small quantity will be needed to plant unit area,
Transport of TPS is inexpensive and simple.
 100 grams of TPS can replace 2 tonnes of seed tubers required for planting one hectare.
 TPS may introduce potato cultivation into new areas where good quality seed tubers are
difficult to produce or store economically.
 TPS can be stored for relatively longer period of time and does not require expensive and
specialized storage structures as required for seed tubers.
 Disease transmission by TPS is less than by seed tubers. Hence, the crop raised through TPS
in almost disease free.
 Potato Diseases:
 Potato blight – a fungal disease which can affect plants in humid weather
 Blackleg – a bacterial disease which thrives in wet conditions
 Gangrene – fungal
 Common scab – bacterial disease which thrives in soils with high pH
 Potato mosaic – viral disease spread by aphids
Potato Varieties:
 Varieties depend on,
 Shape of the tuber
 Shape of the eyes
 Size of the tuber
 Texture of the peel
Granola:
 Features of tubers
 Shape-round
 Outer colour-white
 Inner color-cream
 Shape of the eyes-deep
 Sucker-redish purple colour
Isna:
 Shape-long and oval shape
 Outer colour-white
 Inner color-creamy
 Shape of the eyes-moderate
 Sucker-purplish green color and fibers are low
Seetha:
 Shape-round and oval shpe
 Outer colour-white
 Inner colour-white
 Shape of the eyes –shallow
 Sucker- Reddish purple color and equal size fibbers

Floral Formula:

Research Center:
National:
Central Potato Research Station (Badshahpur, Punjab)
International:
International Potato Center