Abstract

Ahmed Sani, Talib Musa, Abdulla Rahim and Ibrahim Ahmed

Total phosphorus content was tested from three different samples taken at different times, first after 50 days of planting of the crop when there was no disease appeared while second samples were taken from healthy and diseased plant individually, almost 30 days after the first appearance of the symptoms on late blight. Results revealed that there was an overall increase in the quantity of phosphorus in all tested lines after disease appearance. This increase was ranged from 6.0 to 41.8 percent over the healthy plants of that same age group. Maximum increase of 41.8 percent in phosphorus content after disease appearance was observed potato line FD 64-3, while 6.0 percent increase of phosphorus content was observed in line SH 704. Increase in phosphorus content was also observed in the healthy plants of all potato lines/cultivars which were not infected by the disease but this increase might be due to aging factor and was quit insignificant and unnoticeable. All though the phosphorus content was slightly increased in the plants which were not diseased than that of healthy plants which were tested at the time when disease was not appeared. It is apparent from the above figures that the increase in phosphorus content was more pronounced due to the effect of late blight of potato and there was no or very slight effect of aging was observed.