Even though potato (Solanum tuberosum) is an economically important crop, information about leaf characteristics of anatomical structure has not been well studied. Studies of leaf epidermis have significance for basic fields as ecology and physiology and for applied fields as plant pathology and breeding. The objective of this research was to identify a fast and easy technique to prepare semi-permanent slides for studying the anatomy of potato leaf epidermis. Para dermal free hand cut, Jeffrey method, potassium hydroxide and epidermal fingerprint on glass slide techniques were evaluated. Semi-permanent slides were prepared from the longitudinal section of main leaflets from the medium portion of potato plants. An adequate study of all evaluated clones was only possible with the epidermal fingerprint technique. The epidermal fingerprint on glass slides is a fast preparing, low cost and easy implementation technique, which enables to evaluate a high number of potato plants in a short period of time.
stomata; trichomes; breeding; resistance
