Evaluation Of Effects Of Phosphate Fertilizers On Growth And Yields Of Four Sweet Potato Varieties In Kericho County

Sweet potato ipomoea batatas L Lam is among the most important root and tuber food crops in the world ranked seventh based on production and per capita consumption is 24 kg per year in Kenya. Sweet potato tubers are rich in vitamin A B and C and Minerals such as K Na Cl P 26 C and therefore Production of orange flesh sweet potato is important particularly for children and pregnant mothers in Sub Saharan Africa who are often exposed to vitamin A desiciency. Production of sweet potato is constraints by inadequate knowledge on type of fertilizer and rates low yielding varieties with low dry matter content and varietal suitability to higher altitudes. Availability of planting materials of sweet potato suitable for high agro-ecological zones remains a major constraint in promotion of high yielding orange flesh sweet potato in SoinSigowet Sub County Kericho County. In order to address this challenges a study was conducted to find out varietal performance of four Orange flesh sweet potatoes under different phosphate levels in the medium altitudes areas of Kericho. The main objective of the study was to determine the yield performance of the Four Orange Sweet potato varieties under three phosphate fertilizer levels. The Four Orange flesh Sweet potato varieties were Ken spots 1 3 4 and 5 while the three Phosphate levels were 0 kg P2O5kgha 30 kg P2O5kgha and 60 kg P2O5kgha . Randomized completed block design was used with three replicates. All Growth parameters vine length Number of vines per plant and yield components marketable and non marketable storage roots per plant root yield per hectare and Level of Dry matter content for the four sweet varieties were significant p 0.05. In terms of production per hectare Ken Spot 1 produced significantly higher root yield per hectare than all the other three varieties and recommended for medium altitudes zones of SoinSigowet Sub County of Kericho County. Overall Ken Spot 1 produced significantly higher root yield per hectare than all the other three varieties