The effect of physiological age of potato plants on chosen chlorophyll fluorescence parameters

Abstract

Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) crop is the world's number one non-grain food commodity and the fourth main food crop in the world after maize, rice and wheat. It is a typical plant mainly of temperate climate. Chlorophyll a fluorescence kinetics is an informative tool for studying the effects of different environmental stresses on photosynthesis. The aim of this work was to study the response of selected potato cultivars to meteorological conditions during the growing season and physiological age of plants using chlorophyll a fluorescence parameters. The pot experiment was carried out over the course of 2 years with six early cultivars. Chlorophyll a fluorescence measurements were performed on the plants with a Pocket plant efficiency analyzer determined parameters were: Fv/Fm (the ratio of variable to maximal chlorophyll fluorescence) and PI (the performance index of photosystem II). In total 2040 measurements of each parameter were made. Final harvest was performed after full maturity of plants. The results of the experiments were analysed with ANOVA. Changes of chlorophyll a fluorescence parameters in terms of physiological age were analysed using polynomial regression model. A significant negative correlation between the maximum air temperature and PI parameter was found as well as a significant negative correlation between physiological age of potato plants and both chlorophyll a fluorescence parameters.

Keywords

• abiotic stresses
• high temperature during growing season
• modelling
• plant pigment