Response of potato varieties to nitrogen fertilizer rates in Debark District, Northwestern Ethiopia

Abstract

Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) is one of the most important vegetable crops in the highlands of Ethiopia. However, its productivity is very low mainly due to soil infertility, lack of site-specific fertilizer recommendation and appropriate varieties. Therefore, a study was conducted in 2019 under irrigation to evaluate the response of improved potato varieties to different rates of nitrogen fertilizer rates. The treatments comprised of four nitrogen rates (0, 55, 110 and 165 kg ha^-1) and three potato varieties (Belete, Gudene and Local), which were laid in a randomized complete block design with three replications. The analysis of variance revealed that the main effects of nitrogen rates and varieties significantly influenced the tested growth, yield and yield related traits of potato. The maximum marketable tuber yield (30.70 t ha^-1) was recorded from application of 110 kg nitrogen ha⁻¹, which increased tuber yields by 86% as compared to unfertilized plots. Among the tested varieties, Belete produced the highest marketable yield (29.8 t ha^-1) with a yield advantage of 71% compared to the local variety. The partial budget analysis result showed that application of nitrogen 110 kg nitrogen ha⁻¹for Belete variety gave the highest profit (205787ETB ha^-1) with acceptable marginal rate of return (485%). From the present result, it can be concluded that optimum yield and high profit can be obtained by applying110 kg nitrogen ha⁻¹ for Belete variety.