Plant Growth Adaptations of Chilean Native Potato Under Higher Soil and Air Temperature: A Field Comparative Study

A slight increase in air or soil temperature above the optimal range for potato cultivation can affect its performance in different regions of the world. To assess the potential impacts of future climatic conditions in southern Chile, a field experiment was conducted in two growing seasons (2021/2022 and 2022/2023) to examine the effects of an increase in air (+ 3–4 °C) and soil (+ 2–3 °C) temperatures on biomass accumulation and growth dynamics of one modern potato genotype and three Chilean native potato genotypes. To increase the temperature during the entire crop cycle, passive heating systems (i.e. open-top chambers and polyethylene mulch) were employed in this study. Our results showed that the commercial genotype Asterix had a yield reduction across all warmer treatments due to increased air and/or soil temperature. In contrast, the Chilean native potatoes had a comparative advantage against high air temperatures but not against higher soil temperatures. As expected, tuber yield changes coincided with variations in architecture and growth dynamics, differing among the different potato genotypes. Warmer soils would strongly influence the partitioning of assimilates to tubers, resulting in lower yields at higher temperatures.