Production in Greenhouse of Minitubers of Potato Var. ‘desirée’ Using Zeolite As Substrate Starting from in Vitro Culture Plants

The production of potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) seed by organogenesis has, among other problems, losses and damages in the transfer from the acclimatization stage to the field. On the other hand, the potential of zeolite in the culture of different plant species has been demonstrated. Taking in account these aspects, the objective of this research was to produce minitubers of potato cv. 'Desirée' in greenhouse with zeolite as substrate. Plants in rooting stage were transferred directly to the greenhouse. Then a field experiment to compare the results was carried out simultaneously. Plants came from acclimatization stage after 15 days of culture. Survival, fresh mass and number of minitubers per plant were determined. Besides, losses were quantified since the transfer until harvest. The effect of plant height and distance of planting on crop yield were determined. Minitubers produced in both conditions were kept in cold storage for eight months and then the results were compared. Besides, the minitubers were planted in field to determine their yield. The results showed that it is possible to produce minitubers in greenhouse with 100% zeolite substrate. Survival and net yield were higher than in field as well as losses from the transfer to cold storage were lower. In addition, after considering the height of in vitro plants (greater than 4 cm) and planting density (10 x 10 cm) the number of minitubers increased. Direct planting of in vitro plants in the greenhouse without an acclimatization stage reduces the time for obtaining the minitubers. Key words: biotechnological seed, yield