Agro-Morphological Characteristics of Selected Sweet Potato (Ipomoea batatas L.) Varieties from Organic Farming and Their Genetic Background

Authors
N. Kunstelj 1
L. Sinkovič 2
B. Pipan 2
M. Neji 2
V. Meglič 2
1 Naklo Biotechnical Center, Strahinj 99, Naklo, Slovenia.
2 Department of Crop Science, Agricultural Institute of Slovenia, Hacquetova Ulica 17, Ljubljana, Slovenia.
10.48311/jast.2025.24123
Abstract
Sweet potato is one of the most important root crops worldwide. This study aimed to compare agro-morphological characteristics of four sweet potato varieties (Martina, Janja, Lučka, Purple Speclet) from organic farming with additional information about their genetic background. A total of 26 agro-morphological traits were evaluated during vegetation. Pre-grown seedlings were planted in organic fields during the 2021 growing season using the soil ridge cultivation method. The study showed significant differences between varieties in quantitative (except for the extent and intensity of anthocyanin colouration on abaxial veins) and qualitative traits (except for the number and length of primary shoots and internode diameter). The varieties Lučka and Martina proved to be significantly higher yielding compared to the other two varieties. The genetic background of the varieties was evaluated on 8 Simple Sequence Repeat (SSR) loci using allele polymorphisms with a total number of 34 different alleles and an average polymorphic information content of 0.60. The favourable informativeness of the selected markers was confirmed by the global genetic diversity of 0.68. The assignment of each genotype to two genetic groups agreed well with the varietal distribution in the phylogenetic tree and the results of the analysis of the genetic structure (Martina/Janja and Lučka/Purple Speclet). The present study contributes to a better knowledge of the considered sweet potato varieties and their agro-morphological and genetic diversity.

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Subjects

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Journal of Agricultural Science and Technology
Volume 27, Issue 5
July and August 2025
Pages 1043-1059