Press release: Fertilizing potatoes sustainably - the variety makes the difference
Thesis by Göttingen University student on nitrogen fertilization receives award
The Förderungsgemeinschaft der Kartoffelwirtschaft e. V. (Association for the Promotion of the Potato Industry) has honored a thesis that was completed at the University of Göttingen. As part of her Master’s thesis at the Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, Christin Meyer investigated how reduced nitrogen fertilization affects the yield, quality and nitrogen use efficiency of different potato varieties. The results show that a variety-specific reduction in the nitrogen supply has no negative impact on yield or quality. Less fertilization can also lead to more efficient nitrogen use by the plants in certain varieties. In contrast, an increased nitrogen supply reduces the dry matter and starch content in the tubers of the Milva edible variety, which reduces their quality. This effect does not occur with the starch varieties Avamond and Eurotonda. The findings enable sustainable management of fertilization and can be taken into account in breeding. Christin Meyer receives a prize in recognition of her achievement. Excerpts of her work were published in the specialist journal Kartoffelbau.
-The topic is of great importance for agriculture, as the use of nitrogen fertilizer in potato cultivation is regulated and also causes high costs. Higher fertilization is often recommended for starch potatoes compared to table potatoes, but their nitrogen use efficiency is rather low," explains Christin Meyer, who wrote her Master’s thesis in the Department of Plant Product Quality. Her supervisor Dr. Marcel Naumann adds: -Potato varieties react differently to reduced nitrogen fertilization. This finding underlines the need for a variety-specific adjustment of the nitrogen supply. In order to generalize the results, it is necessary to validate them by conducting trials at different locations over several years.
The Förderungsgemeinschaft der Kartoffelwirtschaft e. V. supports student theses on the subject of potatoes every year. The targeted promotion of young talent by the potato industry is a decisive step towards securing its future. The analyses carried out in the Master’s thesis are part of the initial investigations in the project -Potentials for increasing nutrient efficiency and reducing nitrogen emissions in starch potatoes- (POTENZIO ) funded by the Agency for Renewable Resources (FNR). Information on the project can be found at www.fnr.de/index.php’id=11150&fkz=2220NR146A.
Meyer C, Pawelzik E, Naumann M (2023). Reduced nitrogen fertilization: Varieties react differently. Potato Cultivation, 11(74), 32-35.
Dr. Marcel Naumann
Georg-August-University Göttingen
Department of Crop Sciences
Department of Plant Nutrition and Yield Physiology
Carl-Sprengel-Weg 1, 37075 Göttingen
39-25565
Internet: www.uni-goettingen.de/de/652930.html
Elke Pawelzik
Georg-August-University Göttingen
Department of Crop Sciences
Department Quality of Plant Products
Carl-Sprengel-Weg 1, 37075 Göttingen
Internet: www.uni-goettingen.de/de/620921.html
Christin Meyer
801’343
