Optimizing Potato Yield and Quality Via Organic and Mineral Potassium Sources

Abstract

It is known that potassium plays a pivotal role as a sizing agent for potato tubers. So, this research was conducted to evaluate the impact of different treatments on potato, aiming for improved potassium fertilization practices and higher returns. The study focused on the evaluation of the application of banana residues compost to soil as the main factor (applied or not), potassium humate via fertigation as the sub-main factor (applied or not), and the foliar application of mineral potassium sources as the sub-sub-main factor (including potassium nitrate, potassium citrate, potassium silicate, and a control group) on the growth performance and yield quality of potato plants during the successive seasons (2021/22 and 2022/23). The potato plants cultivated in soil treated with banana residues compost demonstrated enhanced growth performance, including higher fresh and dry weights, as well as superior quantitative and qualitative yield compared to plants grown on untreated soil. Moreover, the application of potassium humate further optimized the yield and quality of potato compared to plants grown without potassium humate. Regarding the foliar application of diverse potassium sources, the most effective treatment was found to be potassium nitrate, followed by potassium citrate then potassium silicate, with the control group showing the least favorable results. Overall, the combination of applying banana residues compost along with potassium humate treatment and the subsequent spraying of potassium nitrate proved to be the most successful intervention, significantly improving the growth performance and both quantitative and qualitative yield of potato plants compared to other interventions.