Shading and Container Effects on the Weight of the Dioscorea sparsiflora Tuber

Dioscorea sparsiflora Hemsley (camote de cerro) is a wild species with agricultural potential that is not exploited as a crop but is collected for consumption and sale in western Mexico. The objective of the present research was to evaluate the effect of different light intensities (26,000, 18,000, and 14,000 lux), three shading periods (60, 90, and 180 d), and five types of containers two cylindrical (7 and 9 L), one rectangular (60 L), and two hydroponic channels: one 30 cm wide (45 L), and the other, 40 cm wide (60 L) on two D. sparsiflora accessions. The performances of two accessions (751 and 112) in previous treatments were also evaluated. The tuber weight was highest, with 18,000 lux (6.9 t ha(-1)), and had the highest yield when cultivated with a 60 d shading (33 t ha(-1)) and in the rectangular container (40 t ha(-1)). Accession 751 obtained the highest averages for tuber weight and diameter (43 t ha(-1) and 73 mm, respectively).