Effects of essential oils on potato tuber sprouting at room temperature storage in Ethiopia.

This study was conducted with the objective of finding alternative management options for potato tuber sprouting during storage. Essential oils from , , , , , and were applied in completely randomized design using two quantities (1 and 2 ml) and three frequencies (1, 2, 3). Essential oils from and showed the lowest percentage of weight loss relative to control tubers for varieties (8.07%) and (13.34%), respectively. Essential oils were applied in the form of vapour inside wooden box for 24 h without direct contact with tubers. For both varieties, the potato tuber weight loss found to be minimized using 2 ml essential oils. Similarly, lowest percentage of weight loss at one, two and three applications were found for variety from , and respectively On the other hand, lowest percentage of weight loss was maintained using for variety . The number and length of sprouts did not vary with quantities. Therefore, for variety , lower number of sprouts relative to control tuber (3 sprouts/tuber) was found on potato tuber treated with essential oils from and (2.7 sprouts/tuber) whereas for variety , lower number of sprouts relative to control tuber (8.7 sprouts/tubers) was found on potato tubers treated with essential oils from and (5.7 sprouts/tuber). The length of the longest sprouts on control tubers was 11.7 mm and 20 mm for varieties and , respectively. Longest and shortest length of sprout was found on potato tubers treated with and , respectively, for both varieties. Therefore, essential oils used in the current study are promising alternatives to control potato sprouting during storage. However, seedlings of these species and other potential species must be made available to farmers with training on how to make extracts and apply them.