YIELD PERFORMANCE OF YAM BEAN IN TONGA, SOUTH-PACIFIC

Twenty one accessions of yam bean (Pachyrhizus Rich. ex DC.) were test ed in yield trials under short day conditions in Tonga, South Pacific. Fresh weight tuber yields ranged from 5.3 to 72.0 t ha-1, dry matter content from 8.0 to 20.8% and dry matter yields from 1.20 to 8.57 t ha -1. Crude protein content of peeled tubers varied between 5.1 and 9.8% of dry matter, yielding 71-540 kg ha-1 of crude protein. Varietal var iation in leaf defoliation by the rose beetle, Adoretus versutus Har., was noted.