Effects of nitrogen fertiliser on potato (Solanum tuberosum L., cv. Russet Burbank) in Tasmania. 1. Yield and quality

Thirteen field trials were conducted on ferrosols and tenosols in Tasmania to assess the response of potatoes (Solanum tuberosum L., cv. Russet Burbank) to basal (up to 250 kg/ha) and topdressed (up to 100 kg/ha) nitrogen fertiliser. Economic yield responses to basal nitrogen were obtained at 9 sites. Topdressing did not increase yield compared with equivalent rates of basal nitrogen, and often failed to compensate for a lack of nitrogen applied at planting. This lack of response may reflect the inability of the potato crop to make use of nitrogen applied during tuber bulking. Nitrogen fertiliser decreased tuber specific gravity at several sites. The effects of nitrogen on misshapen tubers, bruising susceptibility, crisp colour and hollow heart were inconsistent and often of no practical importance. However, at 2 sites, nitrogen fertiliser increased yields of misshapen tubers at the expense of processing tuber yields. At 1 of these sites, nitrogen topdressing decreased the yield of misshapen tubers. Otherwise, topdressing had similar effects on tuber quality to those of basal nitrogen. Growers should fertilise with nitrogen to optimise their yields. Optimum rates were greater in paddocks that had been continuously cropped for more than 10 years (average rate 193 kg/ha), than in those that had been in pasture (average rate 48 kg/ha).