Adaptation of Potato to Water Shortage: Irrigation Management and Enhancement of Tolerance to Drought and Salinity

Agriculture that depends upon irrigation is challenged by the increasing scarcity of fresh water and global climate change, and increasing human populations aggravate this situation. The potato crop depends on a regular water supply to secure high quality yields. Abiotic stress factors, such as drought, heat and salinity, have severe, adverse effects on growth and yield. In this review, different approaches to cope with water stress are presented. These approaches include altering morphological, physiological and genetic characteristics of potato and the use of biotechnology. For example, native potato and alien genes have been identified by transcriptomics and may provide useful candidates for deployment against stress. Transgenic potato cultivars harboring many of these genes have been evaluated and show promise for future release as new, stress tolerant cultivars. Potential management tools for economizing water use include efficient irrigation systems and precision agriculture. The use of alternative water resources, such as greywater, recycled wastewater, agricultural drainage water, and desalinated water will contribute to the water requirements of the potato crop and should help meet future challenges.