Evaluation of Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) Nutrient Use Efficiency under Legume Intercropping Systems
Date
2016Author
Gitari, Harun
Gachene, Charles
Karanja, Nancy
Schulte-Geldermann, Elmar
Type
conferenceLanguage
enMetadata
Show full item recordAbstract
A field study was carried out to assess the effect of potato - legume intercropping on a
number of nutrient use efficiency indices, i.e. nitrogen use efficiency (NUE), nitrogen uptake
efficiency (NUpE) and nitrogen harvest index (NHI) and yield. The experiment was laid in
a randomised complete block design (RCBD) with four replicates at Upper Kabete Campus
field station, University of Nairobi during the 2014 short (October-December) and 2015
long (March to June) rainy seasons. Treatments comprised of Sole Potato (CS1) and Potato
intercropped with either climbing bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) (CS2) garden pea (Pisum
sativum) (CS3) or dolichos (Dolichos lablab) (CS4). A basal 200 kg ha-1 of 17N:17P:17K
fertiliser was band applied at planting and an equivalent quantity of CAN (27 % N) as a
top dress to potato crop only at tuber initiation stage. The indices differed significantly
among treatments (p < 0.05) during the two seasons. In season one, CS4 and CS2 had the
highest, lowest total nutrient uptake (Mg ha-1) at 0.062 and 0.045 respectively, while in
season two, CS1 and CS3 had the highest (0.12) and lowest (0.05) respectively. Tuber dry
matter yield, which reflected the NUE followed the significant trend CS4 > CS3 > CS1 >
CS2 and CS1 > CS4 > CS3 > CS2 in season one and two respectively ranging between
0.018 Mg ha−1 and 0.030 Mg ha−1
. Only in the second season did the NHI (proportion
of nitrogen retained in the tubers to the total plant uptake) showed a significant trend
(CS3 > CS4 > CS1 > CS2) ranging from 50 % – 65 %. In terms of tuber yield, CS4 and
CS2 recorded the highest (26.63 Mg ha−1
) and lowest (18.31 Mg ha−1
) respectively in the
short rains and CS1 with 39.32 Mg ha−1 and CS1 with 36.91 Mg ha−1
in the long rains
season. Dolichos lablab (CS4) was the most effective intercrop and could be recommended
for integration into potato cropping systems to improve NUE and productivity.
Citation
Gitari, H., et al. "Evaluation of potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) nutrient use efficiency under legume intercropping systems." Annual conference proceedings of Tropical and Subtropical Agricultural and Natural Resource Management (TROPENTAG), organised by the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences.(BOKU Vienna), Austria. 2016.Publisher
University of Nairobi
Rights
Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 United StatesUsage Rights
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/us/Collections
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