The Investigation of Planting Season Effect on Yield and Phenology of Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) Culivars Using Thermal Indices

In order to evaluate the effect of autumn and winter planting on yield and phenology of potato cultivars using thermal indices an experiment was coducted in split plot in time based on a radomized compelet block design with three replications at Behbahan Agriculture Research Station in Khuzestan province, south of Iran in 2014 and 2015. Cultivar (Sante, Savalan and Javid) was considered as main plot and planting season (autumn and winter planting) as sub plot. In Autumn and winter planting seasons tubers were planted in early October and early December, respectively. Tubers were harvested in early March and mid May in autumn and winter planting seasons, respectively. The duration of sprout dvelopement in the autumn planting season was 14 days shorter than winter planting season, but tuber bulking duration was 25 days longer in the latter planting season. Futhermore, growing degree days, helio thermal unit and photo thermal index of sprout development stage in autumn planting season (117.41°C day, 1967°C day hour and 9.29°C day day-1, respectively) were greater than winter planting. However these agro-meteorologial indices at tuber bulking stage (537.58°C day, 4168.79°C day hour and 10.42°C day day-1, respectively) were smaller in winter planting. Yield, thermal use efficiency and helio thermal use efficiency were reduced (18.36, 34.95 and 31.58%, respectively) due to high temperatures encountered during tuber bulking stage in winter planting as compared with the autumn planting season. The highst yeild, thermal use efficiency and helio thermal use efficiency in both of planting seasons belonged to Javid cultivar.