Abstract: In order to explore the rational cropping pattern for potato， a field experiment was conducted in Ledu County， Qinghai Province. Three modes were set up such as farmer pattern， current pattern and innovative pattern. The amount of N and P2O5 fertilizer used in farmer pattern was 2385 and 3450 kg·hm-2， respectively. The seeds were artificially sowed in the open field in spring. The amount of N， P2O5 and K2O fertilizer used in current pattern was 2400， 2100 and 1500 kg·hm-2， respectively. The seeds were artificially sowed on the ridging field covered with mulch film in spring. The amount of N， P2O5 and K2O fertilizer used in innovative pattern was 1800， 1575 and 1125 kg·hm-2， respectively. The seeds were mechanically sowed in the ridging field covered with mulch film in spring. The yield of potato， nutrients content and fertilizer using efficiency under different cropping patterns were compared. It was shown that crop yield under innovation mode was significantly higher than that under farmer pattern. The highest yield and economic benefit was achieved under innovative mode， which was 35 670 kg·hm-2 and 52 078 yuan·hm-2， respectively. The rational fertilization in innovation mode promoted the transfer of NPK to tubers and improved nutrient efficiency， which led to the highest accumulation of nutrients. Meanwhile， the bias productive forces of NPK fertilizer were also high， especially for phosphorus and potassium， which were more than 200 kg·kg-1. In general， the innovative mode was the best cropping pattern for potato in shallow mountain areas of Qinghai Province.

Key words: potato, cropping pattern, yield, fertilizer use efficiency