EVALUATION OF AEROPONIC MINITUBER'S POTENTIAL FOR BASIC SEED PRODUCTION.

The study conducted at ICAR-Central Potato Research Institute, Regional Station Gwalior over a six-year period from 2017-18 to 2022-23 aimed to evaluate the performance of 17 popular potato varieties. These varieties were divided into early maturing and medium maturing categories. The study focused on various yield attributes and health parameters of these potato varieties, with a particular emphasis on breeder seed production. The emergence percentage ranged from 85% to 99%, indicating that different varieties had varying rates of successful sprouting and growth. Health status of the varieties was found sound. Variability was observed among varieties for yield attributing parameters and Kufri Neelkanth emerged as the top-performing variety in the study. It displayed the highest seed yield per square meter (3.31 kg), the highest number of tubers per square meter (231), and the largest mean seed weight (25.1 grams). Additionally, it had a significant seed multiplication ratio (SMR) by both number (6.9) and weight (25.1). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]