More and more people are growing sweet potatoes in Hungary, but no one has yet tested how long they can be grown successfully on the same soil type. This means the quantitative and qualitative variables of the yield. From 2016 to 2022, I planted sweet potato slips in the same area and after four years, the yields decrease significantly. To reduce problems caused by soilborne pathogens, a three to five year rotation of crops is recommended. In Deszk, we set up the experiment on a 300 m2 area for all seven years. Based on clay loam soil. The area was fallowed for 5 years before 2016 and then planted with sweet potatoes for seven years. We always used the same field, so sweet potatoes were grown in monoculture. We also used the practices of growers in the area for soil preparation and the application of soil disinfectant. There was a significant difference in yields between seven years (p<0.05), with the highest yield (41.01 t/ha) in 2018, followed by 2016 (37.19 t/ha) and the lowest yield in 2022 (10.01 t/ha) (p<0.05). The total rainfall and average temperature of the 2017 growing season were not favourable, which was also reflected in the yield to a significant extent. The year 2019 was 30 t/ha, which can be considered as good results. From 2020 onwards, we have seen a continuous decrease in yields, which can be attributed to the effect of monoculture. The studies show that sweet potatoes can be grown successfully on clay loam soil for four years. In the following years the yield significantly decreased. Thus, it is advisable to set the field aside after four years. I recommend the use of ridges techology because using rides technology the harvesting is much easier, there will be fewer damaged tubers and the tubers have more room to grow in the ridges. Soil-dwelling pests need to be controlled, as soil-dwelling pests can cause serious problems in crop quality. It is advisable to change soil disinfectants every two years so that soil-dwelling pests do not become resistant to the active ingredient.

Keyword: sweet potato, monoculture, ridges-technology, pests

agronomy

Presentation: poster