To evaluate the yield and nitrate concentration in five Iranian spinach landraces, a study was conducted in 2011 using a randomized complete block design with four replications at Isfahan Agricultural and Natural Resources Research Station. In this field experiment, the evaluated landraces included spiny seed Varamin, Varamin leafy, Shahreza, Najaf Abad and Kashan. Varamin spiny seed landrace with 47830 kg ha-1 produced the maximum yield among the landraces. Greater numbers of leaves (more than 20 leaves) and lateral branches (more than 3.5) in the spiny seeds Varamin, Varamin leafy, and Kashan was the reason behind their higher yield. In all five landraces tested, nitrate concentration in the middle leaves of the plant was higher than the upper or lower leaves, though there was no significant difference between the upper and lower leaves in terms of nitrate content. Leaf nitrate concentration in spiny seed Varamin landrace was the highest (1380 ppm based on fresh weight) but there was no significant difference between the amounts of nitrate in this landrace and other landraces (except Kashan landrace). The results showed that the spiny seed Varamin landrace, with acceptable yield and nitrate content can be used as a substitute for genotypes that are common in Isfahan province.

Keywords: Spinach, Petiole, Dry matter percentage, Length of blade, Number of leaves.

Full-Text [PDF 114 kb]   (931 Downloads)