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Article

Open Access

Effect of Variety and Size of Stem Cutting on Flesh Root Yield and Yield Components of Sweet Potato

Author(s)

Musyimi Benjamin Muli and Dau Mwakina

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DOI:10.17265/2161-6264/2016.03.004

Affiliation(s)

Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization, Industrial Crops Research Institute, P.O. Box 16 Mtwapa, 80109, Kenya

ABSTRACT

Sweet potato is an important food crop which contributes to food security. Storage roots are stored in the ground and harvested when needed. In coastal Kenya, the production of the crop is limited by lack of adaptable varieties and shortage of planting materials at the onset of long rains. The prevailing prices of sweet potato vines for planting present a hindrance for sweet potato cultivation culminating to low acreages by farmers. This study was carried out during the long rains of 2011 to 2013 to determine the effect of variety and size of sweet potato cutting on root yield. Four sweet potato varieties were planted under four stem cutting sizes of four, six, eight and 10 nodes. The four varieties were K135, Bungoma, SPK004 and Mtwapa 8 (check). The experimental design was a split plot with varieties assigned to main plots and cutting sizes to sub-plots. The number of roots per plant for Bungoma variety was significantly (P ≤ 0.05) less than that for the check, and variety K135 showed significantly (P ≤ 0.05) higher number of marketable root per plant than the check. The same trend was observed for root yield per hectare. The check variety had the highest percent of dry matter and was significantly higher than that of SPK004 and Bungoma varieties. There were no significant (P ≤ 0.05) differences among the stem cutting sizes as regards to number of roots per plant, number of marketable root per plant and percent of dry matter. The cutting size of six nodes gave similar root yield as the recommended eight nodes, and therefore farmers can adopt shorter vines than the recommended, hence saving on the cost of planting materials.

KEYWORDS

Cutting size, sweet potato, variety, root yield, vine yield, dry matter.

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