Module VI: Nutrient Deficiency Symptoms Lesson 2: Deficiency Symptoms of Primary Nutrients Unit 3: Potassium Deficiency Symptoms After completing this Unit, you should be able to answer: 1.Describe the leaf symptoms due to potassium deficiency on chili pepper plants? 2.How do you distinguish between yellowing of leaves due to potassium and nitrogen deficiencies in chili pepper crop? 3.How the chili pepper plants look in a potassium deficient field?

Module VI: Nutrient Deficiency Symptoms Lesson 2: Deficiency Symptoms of Primary Nutrients Unit 3: Potassium Deficiency Symptoms Potassium deficiency, also known as potash deficiency, is a plant disorder that is most common on light, sandy soils, as well as chalky or peaty soils with a low clay content. It is also found on heavy clays with a poor structure.

Module VI: Nutrient Deficiency Symptoms Lesson 2: Deficiency Symptoms of Primary Nutrients Unit 3: Potassium Deficiency Symptoms Potassium-deficient plants exhibit chlorosis (loss of green color) or yellowing along the leaf margins or tips starting with the bottom leaves and progressing up the plant. In severe cases, the leaves appear dry and scorched at the edges and the surfaces are irregularly chlorotic. Note the yellowing at the leaf margin.

Module VI: Nutrient Deficiency Symptoms Lesson 2: Deficiency Symptoms of Primary Nutrients Unit 3: Potassium Deficiency Symptoms The difference between yellowing of leaves due to nitrogen and potassium deficiencies is that the yellowing of leaf starts from midrib and spreads towards the edges of leaf in nitrogen deficiency (left picture). With potassium deficiency yellowing starts from edges of leaf and spreads inwards (observe in the right picture). -N2 -K

Module VI: Nutrient Deficiency Symptoms Lesson 2: Deficiency Symptoms of Primary Nutrients Unit 3: Potassium Deficiency Symptoms With this, the Unit 3 on Potassium Deficiency Symptoms, and also this Lesson on Deficiency Symptoms of Primary Nutrients concludes. The next Lesson in this Module is about deficiency symptoms of secondary nutrients in chili pepper. Click on the ‘Lessons’ button to select the lesson