Abstract
Drought has negative effects on sweetpotato production. Two experiments with two watering treatments (irrigated and water-stressed) were conducted at Umbeluzi Research Station in 2015. The objectives were to (i) determine response of 48 sweetpotato germplasms to mid-season drought, (ii) determine best traits for improvement of storage root yield under mid-season drought and (iii) assess the selection criteria for identifying drought tolerance in sweetpotato germplasms. The irrigated and water- stressed trials received 640 and 400 mm of water, respectively, throughout the season. Water stress was imposed from 30 to 70 days after planting. Each treatment had two replicates arranged in a randomized complete block design. Data collected on storage root and vine yield and derived drought tolerance indices including harvest index were subjected to analysis of variance in R. Sweetpotato germplasms with high storage root yield under mid-season drought were associated with a high harvest index. Harvest index stability and the geometric mean are key to identifying cultivars with high and stable storage root yield under both treatments. MUSGP0646-126, Irene and Ivone combined both low TOL, SSI, HI and high yield storage root yield across the treatments and over seasons. The use of drought and harvest indices is encouraged for selecting improved cultivars for varied production environments and their regular use in accelerated breeding schemes is suggested.
References
[1] Andrade M.I., Naico A., Ricardo J., Eyzaguirre R., Makunde G.S., Ortiz R., Gruneberg W.J., et al., Genotype x environment interaction and selection for drought adaptation in sweetpotato (Ipomoea batatas [L.] Lam) in Mozambique. Euphytica., 2016, 209, 261-28010.1007/s10681-016-1684-4Search in Google Scholar
[2] Blum A., Drought adaptation in cereal crops, A prologue, In: Ribaut J.M. (Ed.), Drought adaptation in cereals., Haworth Food Products Press, New York, USA, 2006, 301-333Search in Google Scholar
[3] Borlaug N.E., Sixty-two years of fighting hunger: personal recollections. Euphytica., 2007, 157, 287-29710.1007/s10681-007-9480-9Search in Google Scholar
[4] Birol E., Meenakshi, J.V., Oparinde A., Perez,S., Tomlins K., et al., Developing country consumers’ acceptance of biofortified foods: A synthesis, Food Sec., 2015, 7, 555-55810.1007/s12571-015-0464-7Search in Google Scholar
[5] Chapman S.C., Chakraborty S., Dreccer M.F., Howden S.M., et al., Plant adaptation to climate change - opportunities and priorities in breeding. Crop Pasture Science, 2012, 63, 251-26810.1071/CP11303Search in Google Scholar
[6] Deshmukh D.V., Mhase L.B., Jamadagni B.M., et al., Evaluation of chickpea genotypes for drought tolerance, Indian Journal of Pulses Research 2004, 17, 47-49Search in Google Scholar
[7] Fischer R.A., Maurer R., Drought resistance in spring wheat cultivars., I. Grain yield responses in spring wheat, Australian Journal of Agricultural Science, 1978, 29, 892-91210.1071/AR9780897Search in Google Scholar
[8] Fischer K.S., Lafitte R., Fukai S., Atlin G., Hardy B., Breeding Rice for Drought Prone Environments., Los Banos., The Philippines: The International Rice Research Institute, 2003, 98Search in Google Scholar
[9] Grüneberg W.J., Eyzaguirre R., Espinoza J., Mwanga R.O.M., Andrade A., Dapaah H., Tumwegamire S., Agili S., Ndingo-Chipungu F.P., Attaluri S., Kapinga R., Nguyen T., Kaiyung X., Tjintokohadi K., Carey E., Low J., Procedures for the evaluation and analysis of sweetpotato trials., International Potato Center, Lima, Peru, 2010Search in Google Scholar
[10] Lewthwaite S.L., Triggs C.M., Sweetpotato cultivar response to prolonged drought. Agronomy New Zealand, 2012, 42,1-1210.30843/nzpp.2011.64.5973Search in Google Scholar
[11] Lewthwaite S.L., Triggs C.M., Preliminary study of the spatial distribution of sweetpotato storage roots. Agronomy New Zealand, 2009, 39, 111-122Search in Google Scholar
[12] Monneveux P., Ramirez D.A., Pino M.T., Drought tolerance in potato (S. tuberosum L.): Can we learn from drought tolerance research in cereals? Plant Science, 2013, 205, 76-8610.1016/j.plantsci.2013.01.011Search in Google Scholar PubMed
[13] Omwoume I., Charles W., Tropical Root & Tuber Crops, FAO, Rome, 1994Search in Google Scholar
[14] Rosielle A.A., Hamblin J., Theoretical aspects of selection for yield in stress and non-stress environments. Crop Science, 1981, 21, 943-94610.2135/cropsci1981.0011183X002100060033xSearch in Google Scholar
[15] Stathers T., Namanda S., Malinga J., McEwan E., Mwanga R., Carey T., Ernawati A.P., Low J.W., Agili S., Andrade M., Gibson R., et al., Everything You Ever Wanted to Know about sweetpotato: Reaching Agents of Change ToT Manual 3., Vine dissemination. International Potato Center, Nairobi, Kenya Vol 6, 2013Search in Google Scholar
[16] Tuberosa R., Phenotyping for drought tolerance of crops in the genomics era., Frontiers in Physiology, 2012, 3, 347-35810.3389/fphys.2012.00347Search in Google Scholar PubMed PubMed Central
[17] Woolfe J.A. Sweetpotato. An untapped food resource. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK, 1992Search in Google Scholar
© 2017
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 License.
