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This study aimed to investigate the effect of 1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP) on adventitious rooting in two sweetpotato cultivars. Experiments with ‘Beauregard’ and ‘Evangeline’ sweetpotato cuttings revealed differential adventitious root (AR) emergence responses to 1-MCP application. ‘Beauregard’ AR count and length decreased with 1-MCP application in two of four experiments. In contrast, 1-MCP did not influence ‘Evangeline’ root count. However, ‘Evangeline’ root length decreased in three of four experiments. Trypan blue staining of ‘Beauregard’ nodal tissue with delayed AR primordia emergence showed localized dead tissue in the general area where ARs emerge. The degree of staining appeared to correspond with the stage of AR emergence with the staining becoming more intense around the time an AR primordium eventually emerged through a crack in the epidermis. This response agrees with reported results of ethylene-mediated AR emergence in other plant species. These results also appear to suggest that ‘Beauregard’ and ‘Evangeline’ cuttings differ in ethylene sensitivity. This represents the first evidence of genotype-specific ethylene involvement in adventitious rooting of sweetpotato cuttings.

This study characterized lateral root (LR) development attributes during the onset of storage root (SR) initiation stage in ‘Beauregard’ sweetpotato. SR initiation has been defined as the appearance of cambia around the protoxylem and secondary xylem elements. Our results showed that 20-day-old adventitious roots (ARs) classified as SRs had 53% and 85% greater mean LR count than pencil roots (PRs) and lignified roots (LGs), respectively. SRs had 53% and 78% greater mean LR density relative to PRs and LGs, respectively. SRs had 66% and 130% greater mean total LR length than PRs and LGs, respectively. SRs had lower mean main root (MR)/LR length ratio compared with PRs (–38%) and LGs (–60%). SRs had 70% and 134% greater mean surface area than PRs and LGs, respectively. SRs had lower mean MR/LR surface area ratio compared with PRs (–42%) and LGs (–62%). The plot of the first and second principal components revealed the presence of a gradient between extreme LG and SR clusters, suggesting a developmental transition between LGs and SRs with PRs representing an intermediate developmental stage. Although AR architecture is not the sole determinant of SR formation, our data help provide a basis for integrating AR architecture attributes with other factors that are known to influence SR initiation. Growth substrate moisture variability influenced LR development during the critical SR initiation period. Relative to the control treatments, water deprivation 10 to 20 days after transplanting (DAT) reduced mean LR count, length, and surface area by 49%, 103%, and 94%, respectively. Saturated conditions 10 to 20 DAT reduced mean LR count, length, and surface area by 75%, 81%, and 77%, respectively. These results represent the first evidence for the association between anatomical cues of SR initiation and root architecture and provide corroborating data that soil moisture variability 10 to 20 DAT directly influences SR yield potential through AR architecture modifications that are associated with diminished SR formation. This information can be used to further optimize SR yield by identifying agroclimatic and management variables that are associated with desirable LR development during the critical SR initiation stage.

This study characterized the influence of nitrogen (N) rates and variation in local availability on root architecture as measured by lateral root (LR) development attributes during the onset of the storage root (SR) initiation stage in ‘Beauregard’ sweetpotato adventitious roots (ARs). In N rate experiments, plants grown without fertilizer N showed significantly lower values for all measured LR attributes compared with fertilized plants. Total first- (1LR) and second-order LR (2LR) length increased by 78% and 2873%, respectively, as N was increased from 0 to 50 kg·ha⁻¹. Total 1LR and 2LR number increased by 32% and 1465%, respectively. Increasing the N rates to 100 and 200 kg·ha⁻¹ did not result in further increases for all LR attributes measured. There were no differences in AR number between untreated controls and plants fertilized with 50 kg N/ha. However, the number of ARs increased by 65% when fertilizer N was increased from 50 to 100 kg·ha⁻¹. Increasing the rate to 200 kg·ha⁻¹ did not result in further increases in AR number. In split-root experiments, roots grown in the compartment with 50 kg N/ha had 135% and 2916% increase in total 1LR and 2LR length, respectively, compared with roots grown in the compartment without fertilizer N. Total 1LR and 2LR number increased by 110% and 2114%, respectively. There were 111% more ARs in the fertilized compartment relative to the unfertilized compartment. There were no differences in LR attributes and AR number between compartments that received similar fertilizer N rates. In fertilizer placement experiments, there were no differences in LR attributes between pre-mixing fertilizer N and placement of fertilizer ≈4 cm below the surface of the growth substrate. There were also no differences between the unfertilized control and placement of fertilizer ≈4 cm from the bottom of the pot. Plants grown in substrate with pre-mixed N showed 38% and 342% increase in 1LR and 2LR length, respectively, relative to the bottom placement of N. Total number of 1LR and 2LR in the growth substrate with pre-mixed N increased by 30% and 312%, respectively, relative to the bottom placement of N. These results represent the first evidence for the association between sweetpotato root architectural attributes and variation in N rate and localized availability. These results are also consistent with findings in model systems in which local N presence is necessary for LR development. This information can be used to further optimize SR yield by helping to ensure the availability of N at the optimum rate across time and space.

Greenhouse and field culture systems were used to study the effect of drought conditions on the storage root (SR) formation in ‘Beauregard’ sweetpotato (Ipomoea batatas). In the greenhouse culture system, drought was simulated by withholding water for 5 and 10 days after transplanting (DAT) cuttings in dry sand. Control plants received water at planting and every 3 days thereafter. In the field studies, natural drought conditions and selective irrigation were used to impose water deprivation during the critical SR formation period. Greenhouse drought for 5 and 10 DAT reduced the number of SRs by 42% and 66%, respectively, compared with the controls. Field drought resulted in a 49% reduction in U.S. #1 SR yield compared with the irrigated condition. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) analysis showed differential expression of a set of sweetpotato transcription factors and protein kinases among greenhouse-grown plants subjected to well-watered conditions and water deficit during 5 DAT. A significant enhancement of expression was observed for known drought stress-associated genes such as an abscisic acid-responsive elements-binding factor, dehydration-responsive element-binding factor, and homeo-domain-zip proteins. Members of calcium-binding proteins showed differential expression under drought stress. For the first time it is reported that knotted1-like homeobox and BEL1-like genes showed altered expression in response to drought stress under a greenhouse condition. In summary, the results suggest that water deprivation during the SR formation period influences root development and expression patterns of stress-responsive genes and those previously found associated with SR formation in sweetpotato.

Adventitious roots of ‘Beauregard’ and ‘Georgia Jet’ sweetpotato were observed and anatomically characterized over a period of 60 days of storage root development. The majority of ‘Beauregard’ and ‘Georgia Jet’ adventitious roots sampled at 5 to 7 days after transplanting (DAT) possessed anatomical features (five or more protoxylem elements) associated with storage root development. The majority of ‘Beauregard’ (86%) and ‘Georgia Jet’ (89%) storage roots sampled at 60 to 65 DAT were traced directly to adventitious roots extant at 5 to 7 DAT. The two varieties, however, differed in the timing in which regular and anomalous cambia were formed. Regular vascular cambium development, i.e., initiation and completion, was observed in both varieties at 19 to 21 DAT. Formation of complete regular vascular cambium was negligible for ‘Beauregard’ (4%) in comparison with ‘Georgia Jet’ (32%) at 26 to 28 DAT. However, anomalous cambia development adjacent to xylem elements was greater in ‘Beauregard’ (30%) in comparison with ‘Georgia Jet’ (13%). Nearly 40% to 50% of samples in both varieties showed extensive lignification in the stele region. At 32 to 35 DAT, 62% to 70% of the adventitious roots for both varieties had either been initiated (developed anomalous cambium) or were lignified. The remaining adventitious roots showed intermediate stages of vascular cambium development. The adventitious root count increased up to 19 to 21 DAT and then remained constant up to 32 to 35 DAT. These accumulated results suggest that the initial stages of adventitious root development are critical in determining storage root set in sweetpotato.