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