Effect of calcium nitrate on yield of potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) cultivars under terminal heat stress condition in south of Kerman province

Terminal heat sterss considered as one of the major challenges of winter production of potato in warm areas of the country including the south of Kerman provience. To determine the suitable strategy for mitigating terminal heat stress injury, a split-split plot experiment based on randomized complete block design with three replications was conducted in South Kerman Agricultural Research and Education Center (Jiroft), Iran, for 2 years (2013 and 2014). The main factor was heat stress: normal (on time planting; Dec. 31) and terminal heat stress (late planting; Feb. 4) and three potato cultivars; Satina, Sante and Milva and four calcium applications; (without calcium nitrate application, foliar application of 2500 mg.l-1 calcium nitrate in two and three stages and soil application of 75 kg.ha-1 calcium nitrate in two stages) were in sub and sub-sub plots, respectively. Results showed that heat stress reduced marketable yield and the weight and number of marketable tubers per plant. Sante and Satina cultivars produced the highest marketable tuber yield in normal condition (47.15 and 44.9 ton.ha-1, respectively), but under heat stress conditions, the difference between marketable tuber yield of those cultivars was not significant. The application of calcium nitrate improved marketable, non-marketable and total tuber yield and its components in potato cultivars and soil application of 75 kg.ha-1 of calcium nitrate was significantly suprior than the other treatments. The interaction effect of terminal heat stress and calcium nitrate applications on marketable and total tuber yield, mean weight and number of marketable and non-marketable tuber was significant. Soil application of calcium nitrate (75 kg.ha-1) increased marketable tuber yield of potato cultivars under normal and terminal heat stress conditions (10.5 and 24.5%, respectively) that revealed the mitigating effect of calcium nitrate on terminal heat stress in potato cultivars. It concluded that soil application of calcium nitrate seems to be an appropriate method to reduce the adverse effects of terminal heat stress in winter potato production.