Response of Old and Modern Potato Cultivars to Water Availability

Extreme weather events such as drought have a significant impact on sensitive crops such as potatoes, which leads to yield losses and affects the chemical composition of tubers. In a 2-year experiment, two groups of cultivars were tested under control and dry conditions in a greenhouse: modern: Adéla and Karo, and traditional: Blaník, Bojar, Krasava, and Norma. Both drought and cultivar proved to be significant factors influencing tuber yield, chemical composition, and chlorophyll concentration (SPAD) in leaves. Although some cultivars appeared to be less sensitive to water deficiency, the results do not allow us to clearly conclude which group was more resistant to drought. Interesting responses to drought were observed in the Krasava and Bojar cultivars; their tuber weight did not decrease significantly, and these cultivars showed a significant increase in polyphenol content by 23.7% for Krasava and 24.5% for Bojar compared to the control.