Effects of Ozone and Sulfur Dioxide on Tuber Yield and Quality of Potatoes

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Abstract
Air pollution injury of the potato plant (Solanum tuberosum L.) has been documented previously, but potato yield losses have not been estimated in replicated experiments having controlled exposures to ozone (O3) and sulfur dioxide (SO2) A controlled‐environment study involving the speckle‐leaf‐sensitive cultivar ‘Centennial Russet’ was conducted to examine the effects of chronic exposure to O3 and SO2 on plant growth and tuber yield and quality.Ozone, at the highest seasonal dose (44.2 ppm‐h), reduced leaf dry weight 48%, root dry weight 58%, tuber number 38%, and total tuber yield 45%. Lower exposures affected these parameters in linear proportion to the O3 dose. Mean stem (minus leaves) dry weight, tuber dry weight, tuber dry matter percentage, partitioning of dry matter to tubers, and tuber sugar concentrations were not affected. Tuber N concentration increased linearly by up to 21% as the O3 dose increased. Plants grown outside of chambers in ambient air showed effects consistent with results obtained within the chambers. The plants grown outside received a total seasonal O3 dose of 50.4 ppm‐h and produced 58% less tuber yield than filtered air control plants.Plant responses to SO2 exposure were much less pronounced than their responses to exposure to O3. However, leaf symptom development in O3‐treated plants was markedly intensified by the presence of SO2. Small reductions in tuber yield and mean tuber size, but not in tuber number, were observed in SO2‐treated plants. Tuber N concentration increased slightly in SO2‐treated plants.A significant O3 × SO2 interaction was observed in the case of tuber N concentration only; SO2 accentuated the O3‐induced increase in N content.

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