Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) is a versatile food crop and a source of cheap human diet in many c... more Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) is a versatile food crop and a source of cheap human diet in many countries. It can be used as fresh products and commercially processed foods such as French fries and chips. Research efforts carried out in Ethiopia related to processing quality were limited in their scope of quality parameters considered. Therefore, this experiment was conducted during the main rainy season of 2017 at Holetta with the objectives of the nature and magnitude to know genetic diversity and the characters contributing in potato genotypes and also to screen out genetically diverse parents for developing high yielding and quality potato by using cluster and principal component analysis. A total of 24 potato genotypes were evaluated for 23 quantitative and six qualitative traits in randomized complete block design with three replications. The first eight principal components accounted 90.26% for the observed variations among 24 potato genotypes. Of these, the first, the second and the third principal components constituted 28.69%, 18.74% and 13.00% of the variation, respectively. The genetic distances among the 24 potato genotypes ranged from 3.40 to 11.80 and the genotypes were grouped into eight clusters based on quantitative and qualitative traits. Cluster II consisted of 25%, Cluster IV, I, III contained 20.83%, 16.67% and 12.5% of genotypes, respectively, while Cluster VI, VII and VIII each consisted of one genotype. In conclusion, genotypes grouped under Cluster II and VIII worth further evaluation to obtain genotypes with highest total tuber yield, specific gravity of tuber, dry matter content, total starch content, acceptable tuber physical and frying quality with other desirable traits.
Urologists and nephrologists attribute pyelonephritis of pregnant women to the category of compli... more Urologists and nephrologists attribute pyelonephritis of pregnant women to the category of complicated upper urinary tract infections that threaten the development of a severe purulent-septic process. The frequency of pyelonephritis in pregnant women ranges from 12.2 to 33.8%. In this research, laboratory indicators of the state of immunity and lipid peroxidation using fuzzy decision logic are used to improve the quality of differential diagnosis of serous and purulent pyelonephritis in pregnant women. A space of informative indicators was formed that characterize the state of immune changes, making it possible to carry out the differential diagnosis of pyelonephritis forms in pregnant women with high accuracy. Results of the operation of the obtained decision rules in the control sample showed that the diagnostic efficiency of the proposed method reaches 93%, which is acceptable for use in medical practice.
Viruses are among the significant biotic constraints burdening global potato production, particul... more Viruses are among the significant biotic constraints burdening global potato production, particularly in developing countries where seed certification is not common and production, availability and accessibility to quality seed potato is a big hindrance. Virus infection in seed potato reduces yield, and the problem is exacerbated when an early-generation seed is affected. The prevalence of six key potato viruses, PVY, PVX, PLRV, PVA, PVS, and PVM, was assessed among decentralized seed multipliers such as individuals, farmer seed group cooperatives, private companies, and agricultural research center that produce early generation seed in six major potato growing districts in Ethiopia. A total of 262 leaf samples were randomly collected from potato plants and analyzed using a double antibody sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (DAS-ELISA) for potato viruses. Potato virus prevalence was calculated as the proportion of samples that tested positive for the viruses against the tota...
International Journal of Food Science and Agriculture
Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) is the third most important food crop in the world in terms of cons... more Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) is the third most important food crop in the world in terms of consumption after rice and wheat. It can be used as fresh products and commercially processed foods such as French fries and chips. In Ethiopia, the released varieties have not met the consumers' demand for processing purpose. Therefore, the objective of this study was to estimate the magnitude of genetic distance and to identify the major traits contributing for processing quality traits among the studied genotypes by using cluster and principal component analysis. The experiment was conducted during the main rainy season of 2017 at Holetta, Ethiopia. A total of 24 potato genotypes were evaluated for 23 quantitative traits in randomized complete block design with three replications. The genetic distances among the 24 potato genotypes ranged from 2.73 to 10.94 and the genotypes were grouped into six clusters based on quantitative traits. Cluster II consisted of 33.33%, Cluster I contained 29.17%, cluster III had 16.67% and cluster IV had 12.50% potato genotypes, while cluster V and VI contained each one (4.17%) genotype. The first six principal components accounted for 88.20% for the observed variations among 24 potato genotypes. Of these, the first, the second and the third principal components constituted 34.30%, 20.70% and 12.00% of the variation, respectively. In conclusion, according to cluster mean and principal component analysis cluster II and cluster VI contained the best genotypes for highest total tuber yield, marketable tuber yield, specific gravity of tuber, dry matter content and total starch content traits and could be used as parents in crossing program targeted at developing processing type varieties.
Ethiopia is one of the major potato producing countries of the Sub-Saharan Africa region where po... more Ethiopia is one of the major potato producing countries of the Sub-Saharan Africa region where potato is the fastest expanding food crop. The natural environment in Ethiopia is very suitable for year round production of potato using rain-fed and irrigated systems. However, the actual potato yield in the country ranges between 8-10 t/ha, which is slightly below the average for Africa. Shortage of good quality seed has been recognized as the single most important factor limiting potato production in the developing countries including Ethiopia. Therefore, the objective of this paper is to review the accelerating role of rapid seed potato multiplication technologies for potato seed production in Ethiopia. A low adoption of recommended seed potato technologies in the country could be due to a lack of alternative seed potato production methods compatible with farmers’ economic and agro-ecological conditions. Since 2010, Holetta Agricultural Research Centre in collaboration with Internatio...
Journal of Plant Pathology & Microbiology, 2020
On-site assessment and detection of plant diseases is a prerequisite to inspect the health status... more On-site assessment and detection of plant diseases is a prerequisite to inspect the health status of seed potatoes and to make cost-effective disease management decisions. The present study was conducted in 60 major seed potato producing cooperatives of Ethiopia to assess the extent of potato bacterial wilt disease and to generate information on current status of R. solanacearum. The field assessment and inspection survey was conducted during 2015/16 for 3 seasons in 140 potato fields covering 123.30 hectares of seed potato. Symptomatic plants were confirmed for R. solanacearum by Agri Strip kit, potassium hydroxide (KOH) test and vascular flow (VF) techniques. The results of the study indicated that out of 140 seed potato fields assessed, 26 (equivalent to 18.57%) or some 33.3% of seed cooperatives were infested by bacterial wilt. The highest disease incidence (82.5%) was recorded in Jeldu district followed by Wonchi district (60%) where most of seed potato is being distributed to the country. Based on the results of three disease confirmation tools (Agri Strip, KOH and VF) implemented, 34.75 (28.18%) hectares of the fields showed positive results. Disease prevalence ranged from 0 to 100%. In some districts like Cheha, Doyo-gena and Shashamane, the disease prevalence was 100%, whereas 50% disease prevalence was recorded in Arsi-Negelle and Kofole districts. This study describes the current infestation level of bacterial wilt in major seed producing cooperatives of Ethiopia and potato production is highly threatened by Ralstonia solanacearum in most of the areas addressed by this survey.
To determine the required levels of nitrogen and potassium, an experiment was conducted at Holett... more To determine the required levels of nitrogen and potassium, an experiment was conducted at Holetta Agricultural Research Center and Jeldu sub Center from 2014-2015 using three factors (Jalenie, Gudenie and Belete potato varies; 87, 110, 133kg/ha nitrogen rates and 0, 34.5, 69, 103.5kg/ha potassium in the form of K2O levels) and as a completely randomized block design arrangement with three replications. In each location every year the 36 treatments (4 potassium oxide levels x 3 nitrogen levels x 3 varieties) were assigned in random combinations to 36 plots of one block in a random case which was replicated in to two additional blocks of different randomizations in order to make total of three replications/blocks. Data were analyzed by SAS software Version 9.2. Potassium rates significantly affected the total yield and marketable yield as compared to the control treatment. Application of potassium at 103.5 kg/ha produced significantly a higher marketable yield than all rates. As comp...
In soilless culture like aeroponics, nutrient optimization is the most critical factor to produce... more In soilless culture like aeroponics, nutrient optimization is the most critical factor to produce high quality and high yield of clean potato seed. Each crop has an optimum nutritional requirement. Even each potato cultivar may require a specific nutrient solution in an aeroponics unit. A nutrient optimization experiment was conducted at Holetta agricultural research center to study the effect of different nutrient solution levels on the physical quality and yield of potato mini-tubers. The treatments were four different nutrient solutions of greenhouse grade macro nutrients measured in (g) for the preparation of 500 liter volume of nutrient solution that is to be restocked when the nutrient tank becomes empty. The nutrient EC and pH were adjusted as per the requirements. A=(118 g CaNO3, 252 g KNO3, 68 g KH2PO4 and 100 g MgSO4) ,B=(59 g CaNO3, 126 g KNO3, 68 g KH2PO4 and 100 g MgSO4), C=(118 g CaNO3, 252 g KNO3, 68 g KH2PO4 and 100 g MgSO4 until flowering and reduced by half after f...
An experiment was conducted on a Nitisol of Holetta agricultural research and Jeldu Sub-center us... more An experiment was conducted on a Nitisol of Holetta agricultural research and Jeldu Sub-center using three factors such as potato varieties (Belete, Jalenie and Gudanie), nitrogen rates (87, 110 and 133 kg/ha) and potassium oxide rates (0, 34.5, 69 and 103 kg/ha) that were arranged on randomized complete block design with three replications. The data were subjected to Proc GLM model of SAS software version 9.2. Higher tuber nitrogen content, uptake and utilization was obtained from Holetta location than Jeldu. Increasing nitrogen fertilizer from 87 to 133 kg/ha reduced the tuber nitrogen uptake and utilization efficiency by 75.56 and 75.49%, respectively. The interaction between variety and location also highly significantly affected tuber nitrogen content and nitrogen utilization efficiency. The interaction between nitrogen and variety affected tuber nitrogen in percent and protein content highly significantly. The highest tuber nitrogen and protein content was obtained from Belete and Gudenie varieties at a rate of 110 kg/ha nitrogen. From these results, it can be concluded that, the interaction between nitrogen and potassium rates did not affect significantly any parameter measured in this experiment, while nitrogen, varieties, interaction of location with variety showed significantly different nitrogen use efficiencies and tuber minerals content.
Field experiment was conducted at Holetta and Jeldu Agricultural Research Station in the central ... more Field experiment was conducted at Holetta and Jeldu Agricultural Research Station in the central highlands of Ethiopia to determine the rates of Nitrogen (N) and Potassium (K) fertilizers on growth, yield and yield components of potato. 4 × 3 2 factorial treatment was arranged in completely randomized block design with three replications on plot size of 3 m × 3 m during 2014-2015 cropping season. Nitrogen (87 kg, 110 kg and 133 kg/ha), Potassium (0, 34.5 kg, 69 kg and 103.5 kg/ha) and potato varieties (Betete, Gudenie and Jalenie) were used. Data were analyzed by using SAS software Version 9.2. The interaction effect of potassium and nitrogen fertilizers did affect marketable tuber number and plant height significantly. Gudenie produced the highest marketable yield (30.53 ton/ha) in 2015 with application of 69 kg/ha potassium and 110 kg/ha nitrogen rates while lowest marketable yield (16.67 ton/ha) was obtained from Belete variety at 0 kg/ha potassium rate and 87 kg/ha nitrogen rate. From these results, it can be concluded that interaction of nitrogen and potassium rates affected significantly plant height and marketable tuber numbers. Therefore, it is better to apply 69 kg/ha potassium and 110 kg/ha nitrogen for potato production to obtain reasonable economic yield at sites similar to experimental locations.
Quality seed is one of the major bottlenecks hampering the production and productivity of potato ... more Quality seed is one of the major bottlenecks hampering the production and productivity of potato not only in Ethiopia but also in Sub-Saharan Africa. Since the 1970’s, the Ethiopian Institute of Agricultural Research has generated a number of improved potato production technologies such as improved varieties with accompanying agronomic practices, crop protection measures, postharvest handling techniques and utilization options. The developed technologies were promoted from 2013-2015 via technology promotion and popularization to the Wolmera, Adea-Bera and Ejere districts with the objective of creating awareness and up scaling of improved potato production and utilization technologies. The Potato Improvement Research Program and the Research and Extension Division of Holetta Research Center in collaboration with extension staff of the Ministry of Agriculture (MoA) undertake this activity. The farmers were selected and organized in Farmer Field Schools and all stakeholders were engage...
Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) is a versatile food crop and a source of cheap human diet in many c... more Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) is a versatile food crop and a source of cheap human diet in many countries. It can be used as fresh products and commercially processed foods such as French fries and chips. Research efforts carried out in Ethiopia related to processing quality were limited in their scope of quality parameters considered. Therefore, this experiment was conducted during the main rainy season of 2017 at Holetta with the objectives of the nature and magnitude to know genetic diversity and the characters contributing in potato genotypes and also to screen out genetically diverse parents for developing high yielding and quality potato by using cluster and principal component analysis. A total of 24 potato genotypes were evaluated for 23 quantitative and six qualitative traits in randomized complete block design with three replications. The first eight principal components accounted 90.26% for the observed variations among 24 potato genotypes. Of these, the first, the second and the third principal components constituted 28.69%, 18.74% and 13.00% of the variation, respectively. The genetic distances among the 24 potato genotypes ranged from 3.40 to 11.80 and the genotypes were grouped into eight clusters based on quantitative and qualitative traits. Cluster II consisted of 25%, Cluster IV, I, III contained 20.83%, 16.67% and 12.5% of genotypes, respectively, while Cluster VI, VII and VIII each consisted of one genotype. In conclusion, genotypes grouped under Cluster II and VIII worth further evaluation to obtain genotypes with highest total tuber yield, specific gravity of tuber, dry matter content, total starch content, acceptable tuber physical and frying quality with other desirable traits.
Urologists and nephrologists attribute pyelonephritis of pregnant women to the category of compli... more Urologists and nephrologists attribute pyelonephritis of pregnant women to the category of complicated upper urinary tract infections that threaten the development of a severe purulent-septic process. The frequency of pyelonephritis in pregnant women ranges from 12.2 to 33.8%. In this research, laboratory indicators of the state of immunity and lipid peroxidation using fuzzy decision logic are used to improve the quality of differential diagnosis of serous and purulent pyelonephritis in pregnant women. A space of informative indicators was formed that characterize the state of immune changes, making it possible to carry out the differential diagnosis of pyelonephritis forms in pregnant women with high accuracy. Results of the operation of the obtained decision rules in the control sample showed that the diagnostic efficiency of the proposed method reaches 93%, which is acceptable for use in medical practice.
Viruses are among the significant biotic constraints burdening global potato production, particul... more Viruses are among the significant biotic constraints burdening global potato production, particularly in developing countries where seed certification is not common and production, availability and accessibility to quality seed potato is a big hindrance. Virus infection in seed potato reduces yield, and the problem is exacerbated when an early-generation seed is affected. The prevalence of six key potato viruses, PVY, PVX, PLRV, PVA, PVS, and PVM, was assessed among decentralized seed multipliers such as individuals, farmer seed group cooperatives, private companies, and agricultural research center that produce early generation seed in six major potato growing districts in Ethiopia. A total of 262 leaf samples were randomly collected from potato plants and analyzed using a double antibody sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (DAS-ELISA) for potato viruses. Potato virus prevalence was calculated as the proportion of samples that tested positive for the viruses against the tota...
International Journal of Food Science and Agriculture
Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) is the third most important food crop in the world in terms of cons... more Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) is the third most important food crop in the world in terms of consumption after rice and wheat. It can be used as fresh products and commercially processed foods such as French fries and chips. In Ethiopia, the released varieties have not met the consumers' demand for processing purpose. Therefore, the objective of this study was to estimate the magnitude of genetic distance and to identify the major traits contributing for processing quality traits among the studied genotypes by using cluster and principal component analysis. The experiment was conducted during the main rainy season of 2017 at Holetta, Ethiopia. A total of 24 potato genotypes were evaluated for 23 quantitative traits in randomized complete block design with three replications. The genetic distances among the 24 potato genotypes ranged from 2.73 to 10.94 and the genotypes were grouped into six clusters based on quantitative traits. Cluster II consisted of 33.33%, Cluster I contained 29.17%, cluster III had 16.67% and cluster IV had 12.50% potato genotypes, while cluster V and VI contained each one (4.17%) genotype. The first six principal components accounted for 88.20% for the observed variations among 24 potato genotypes. Of these, the first, the second and the third principal components constituted 34.30%, 20.70% and 12.00% of the variation, respectively. In conclusion, according to cluster mean and principal component analysis cluster II and cluster VI contained the best genotypes for highest total tuber yield, marketable tuber yield, specific gravity of tuber, dry matter content and total starch content traits and could be used as parents in crossing program targeted at developing processing type varieties.
Ethiopia is one of the major potato producing countries of the Sub-Saharan Africa region where po... more Ethiopia is one of the major potato producing countries of the Sub-Saharan Africa region where potato is the fastest expanding food crop. The natural environment in Ethiopia is very suitable for year round production of potato using rain-fed and irrigated systems. However, the actual potato yield in the country ranges between 8-10 t/ha, which is slightly below the average for Africa. Shortage of good quality seed has been recognized as the single most important factor limiting potato production in the developing countries including Ethiopia. Therefore, the objective of this paper is to review the accelerating role of rapid seed potato multiplication technologies for potato seed production in Ethiopia. A low adoption of recommended seed potato technologies in the country could be due to a lack of alternative seed potato production methods compatible with farmers’ economic and agro-ecological conditions. Since 2010, Holetta Agricultural Research Centre in collaboration with Internatio...
Journal of Plant Pathology & Microbiology, 2020
On-site assessment and detection of plant diseases is a prerequisite to inspect the health status... more On-site assessment and detection of plant diseases is a prerequisite to inspect the health status of seed potatoes and to make cost-effective disease management decisions. The present study was conducted in 60 major seed potato producing cooperatives of Ethiopia to assess the extent of potato bacterial wilt disease and to generate information on current status of R. solanacearum. The field assessment and inspection survey was conducted during 2015/16 for 3 seasons in 140 potato fields covering 123.30 hectares of seed potato. Symptomatic plants were confirmed for R. solanacearum by Agri Strip kit, potassium hydroxide (KOH) test and vascular flow (VF) techniques. The results of the study indicated that out of 140 seed potato fields assessed, 26 (equivalent to 18.57%) or some 33.3% of seed cooperatives were infested by bacterial wilt. The highest disease incidence (82.5%) was recorded in Jeldu district followed by Wonchi district (60%) where most of seed potato is being distributed to the country. Based on the results of three disease confirmation tools (Agri Strip, KOH and VF) implemented, 34.75 (28.18%) hectares of the fields showed positive results. Disease prevalence ranged from 0 to 100%. In some districts like Cheha, Doyo-gena and Shashamane, the disease prevalence was 100%, whereas 50% disease prevalence was recorded in Arsi-Negelle and Kofole districts. This study describes the current infestation level of bacterial wilt in major seed producing cooperatives of Ethiopia and potato production is highly threatened by Ralstonia solanacearum in most of the areas addressed by this survey.
To determine the required levels of nitrogen and potassium, an experiment was conducted at Holett... more To determine the required levels of nitrogen and potassium, an experiment was conducted at Holetta Agricultural Research Center and Jeldu sub Center from 2014-2015 using three factors (Jalenie, Gudenie and Belete potato varies; 87, 110, 133kg/ha nitrogen rates and 0, 34.5, 69, 103.5kg/ha potassium in the form of K2O levels) and as a completely randomized block design arrangement with three replications. In each location every year the 36 treatments (4 potassium oxide levels x 3 nitrogen levels x 3 varieties) were assigned in random combinations to 36 plots of one block in a random case which was replicated in to two additional blocks of different randomizations in order to make total of three replications/blocks. Data were analyzed by SAS software Version 9.2. Potassium rates significantly affected the total yield and marketable yield as compared to the control treatment. Application of potassium at 103.5 kg/ha produced significantly a higher marketable yield than all rates. As comp...
In soilless culture like aeroponics, nutrient optimization is the most critical factor to produce... more In soilless culture like aeroponics, nutrient optimization is the most critical factor to produce high quality and high yield of clean potato seed. Each crop has an optimum nutritional requirement. Even each potato cultivar may require a specific nutrient solution in an aeroponics unit. A nutrient optimization experiment was conducted at Holetta agricultural research center to study the effect of different nutrient solution levels on the physical quality and yield of potato mini-tubers. The treatments were four different nutrient solutions of greenhouse grade macro nutrients measured in (g) for the preparation of 500 liter volume of nutrient solution that is to be restocked when the nutrient tank becomes empty. The nutrient EC and pH were adjusted as per the requirements. A=(118 g CaNO3, 252 g KNO3, 68 g KH2PO4 and 100 g MgSO4) ,B=(59 g CaNO3, 126 g KNO3, 68 g KH2PO4 and 100 g MgSO4), C=(118 g CaNO3, 252 g KNO3, 68 g KH2PO4 and 100 g MgSO4 until flowering and reduced by half after f...
An experiment was conducted on a Nitisol of Holetta agricultural research and Jeldu Sub-center us... more An experiment was conducted on a Nitisol of Holetta agricultural research and Jeldu Sub-center using three factors such as potato varieties (Belete, Jalenie and Gudanie), nitrogen rates (87, 110 and 133 kg/ha) and potassium oxide rates (0, 34.5, 69 and 103 kg/ha) that were arranged on randomized complete block design with three replications. The data were subjected to Proc GLM model of SAS software version 9.2. Higher tuber nitrogen content, uptake and utilization was obtained from Holetta location than Jeldu. Increasing nitrogen fertilizer from 87 to 133 kg/ha reduced the tuber nitrogen uptake and utilization efficiency by 75.56 and 75.49%, respectively. The interaction between variety and location also highly significantly affected tuber nitrogen content and nitrogen utilization efficiency. The interaction between nitrogen and variety affected tuber nitrogen in percent and protein content highly significantly. The highest tuber nitrogen and protein content was obtained from Belete and Gudenie varieties at a rate of 110 kg/ha nitrogen. From these results, it can be concluded that, the interaction between nitrogen and potassium rates did not affect significantly any parameter measured in this experiment, while nitrogen, varieties, interaction of location with variety showed significantly different nitrogen use efficiencies and tuber minerals content.
Field experiment was conducted at Holetta and Jeldu Agricultural Research Station in the central ... more Field experiment was conducted at Holetta and Jeldu Agricultural Research Station in the central highlands of Ethiopia to determine the rates of Nitrogen (N) and Potassium (K) fertilizers on growth, yield and yield components of potato. 4 × 3 2 factorial treatment was arranged in completely randomized block design with three replications on plot size of 3 m × 3 m during 2014-2015 cropping season. Nitrogen (87 kg, 110 kg and 133 kg/ha), Potassium (0, 34.5 kg, 69 kg and 103.5 kg/ha) and potato varieties (Betete, Gudenie and Jalenie) were used. Data were analyzed by using SAS software Version 9.2. The interaction effect of potassium and nitrogen fertilizers did affect marketable tuber number and plant height significantly. Gudenie produced the highest marketable yield (30.53 ton/ha) in 2015 with application of 69 kg/ha potassium and 110 kg/ha nitrogen rates while lowest marketable yield (16.67 ton/ha) was obtained from Belete variety at 0 kg/ha potassium rate and 87 kg/ha nitrogen rate. From these results, it can be concluded that interaction of nitrogen and potassium rates affected significantly plant height and marketable tuber numbers. Therefore, it is better to apply 69 kg/ha potassium and 110 kg/ha nitrogen for potato production to obtain reasonable economic yield at sites similar to experimental locations.
Quality seed is one of the major bottlenecks hampering the production and productivity of potato ... more Quality seed is one of the major bottlenecks hampering the production and productivity of potato not only in Ethiopia but also in Sub-Saharan Africa. Since the 1970’s, the Ethiopian Institute of Agricultural Research has generated a number of improved potato production technologies such as improved varieties with accompanying agronomic practices, crop protection measures, postharvest handling techniques and utilization options. The developed technologies were promoted from 2013-2015 via technology promotion and popularization to the Wolmera, Adea-Bera and Ejere districts with the objective of creating awareness and up scaling of improved potato production and utilization technologies. The Potato Improvement Research Program and the Research and Extension Division of Holetta Research Center in collaboration with extension staff of the Ministry of Agriculture (MoA) undertake this activity. The farmers were selected and organized in Farmer Field Schools and all stakeholders were engage...
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