Supplemental Calcium Application to Potatoes Reduces the Incidence of Black Spot Bruise Induced by Mechanical Harvest
in HortScienceSupplemental calcium application has been shown in our previous work to improve tuber quality and reduce internal defects. We evaluated the response under field conditions of five commerically significant cultivars to a combination of calcium nitrate, calcium chloride and urea (168 kg·ha-1 per season) over three seasons. We were able to determine that the cultivar with the greatest response to supplemental calcium for reduced bruising, `Atlantic' had the lowest levels of tuber tissue calcium. Conversely, cultivars with least response to supplemental calcium, `Dark Red Norland' and `Superior', had the highest levels of tuber tissue calcium. `Snowden' was both intermediate in response to calcium and tuber tissue concentration. Based on data for 3 years, we determined that across cultivars the calcium concentration at which tubers no longer respond is ≈250 ppm and ranges for individual years from 195 to 242 ppm. These results suggest that seasonal variation for individual cultivars may affect the tuber need for calcium for reduced bruising. Although the exact mechanism is not known, we believe that calcium supplemented to bulking tubers may lead to improved cell membrane stability, increased wall structure or enhanced ability of tubers to repair following injury. The results of our study show that supplemental calcium fertilization has the ability to significantly reduce the incidence of tuber bruising for several cultivars.
