To reveal the allelopathic effects of potato, seven compounds were isolated from the rhizosphere soil: 7-methoxycoumarin (1), palmitic acid (2), caffeic acid (3), chlorogenic acid (4), quercetin dehydrate (5), quercitrin (6), and rutin (7). Bioassays showed that compounds 1, 2, 4, and 6 had inhibitory effects on the growth of L. sativa and tissue culture seedlings of potato. The existence of the allelochemicals was confirmed by HPLC, and their contents were quantified with a total concentration of 9.02 μg/g in the rhizosphere soil of replanted potato. Approaches on the interactions of the allelochemicals and pathogens of potato including A. solani, B. cinerea, F. solani, F. oxysporum, C. coccodes, and V. dahlia revealed that compound 1 had inhibitory effects but compounds 2-4 promoted the colony growth of the pathogens. These findings demonstrated that the autotoxic allelopathy and enhancement of the pathogens caused by the accumulation of the allelochemicals in the continuously cropped soil should be one of the main reasons for the replant problems of potato.
Keywords: allelochemicals; antifungal effects; autotoxicity; potato (Solanum tuberosum L.); replant problems.