The Significance of Salinity Level on Seed Germination and Seedling Growth of Selected Commiphora Species in Yabello district, Southern Ethiopia (original) (raw)

2029, The Significance of Salinity Level on Seed Germination and Seedling Growth of Selected Commiphora Species in Yabello district, Southern Ethiopia

The experiment was carried out in Wanja Public Nursery sites in Gera, Southwest Ethiopia; in transparent plastic greenhouses on pots and laboratory in the 2018 season for Commiphora boranensis, Commiphora habessinica and Commiphora corrugate species by using complete random block design with four treatments and five replications. All salinity levels (0.49dS/m or control, 8, 16 and 24dS/m) were then applied to each species with 5 replications making 20 treatments among the total of 60 pots. Data was collected on root and shoot length, root length density, root and shoot biomass by destructive methods. Germination percentage was recorded on completion of germination in lab. All data were tested at P < 0.05 for significant differences. C. corrugate and C. boranensis recorded only 0 and 40% seed germination, respectively at 24dS/m salinity level, and C. habessinica was more tolerant to salinity with 51.3% germination at 24dS/m. As salinity increased to 24dS/m ECe, the shoot length of C. corrugate was null. The result of C. habessinica recorded the highest shoot dry matter at control level and was radically declined to 2.05g and 1.43g at 16ds/m and 24ds/m levels respectively, while shoot dry matter of C. corrugate and C. habessinica at 24ds/m showed no statistical differences. No statistical differences were observed between C. boranensis and C. corrugate at 8ds/m for root length and density. As salinity increased to 24dS/m, the root dry matter decreased for all species. Generally, C. habessinica showed best tolerance in salinity increment followed by C. boranensis and C. corrugate respectively. So, we can conclude that C. habessinica better fit to restore dryland ecosystem with salt affected soils at least with less or equal to the current level of salinity used in the experiment.

ROOT MORPHOLOGY AND SEEDLING GROWTH OF THREE MALVACEOUS SALT TOLERANT PLANTS AT SALINE RHIZOSPHERE

The effects of salinity were studied on root morphology and seedling growth in thirty five day old Gossypium hirsutum, Kosteletzkya virginica and Thespesia populnea under different concentrations of sea salt solution i.e. non saline control (EC iw : 0.4 dS.m-1), 0.5% sea salt (EC iw : 6.2 dS.m-1), 1.0% sea salt (EC iw : 12.95 dS.m-1). Results showed that primary root length was reduced in K. virginica at 1.0% sea salt, while it remained almost unaffected in the other two plants at this salinity in comparison to control. Number of secondary roots increased in G. hirsutum and T. populnea but in K. virginica they show a slight decrease. All the three plants showed promotion in the length of secondary roots at 0.5% salinity. Number of tertiary roots was enhanced in T. populnea at 0.5% salinity level, whereas the other two plants exhibit inhibition of tertiary roots. Root biomass was increased in G. hirsutum at 0.5% salinity but decreased at higher salinity. K. virginica and T. populnea showed decrease with the increasing salinity. Fresh and dry shoot biomass and plant height showed a gradual decrease in response to increasing salinity in all the three species. The number of leaves decreased gradually in K. virginica and T. populnea as the salinity of the rooting medium increased, whereas, in G. hirsutum, the number of leaves decreased under saline condition but the number of leaves were more or less same under two salinity levels. Leaf area per plant of K. virginica and G. hirsutum gradually reduced with increasing salinity. In T. populnea leaf area increased at 0.5% salinity and decreased at 1.0% salinity level. T. populnea showed more uptake of Na + and K + under non saline condition as compared to the other two plants. Uptake of Na + increased with increasing salinity in all the three plants. K + concentration increased in roots of T. populnea and G. hirsutum and decreased in K. virginica at 0.5% salinity. At 1.0% salinity level K + concentration substantially decreased in all the three plants. The results showed that K. virginica was comparatively more tolerant under saline condition, where as G. hirsutum showed the comparatively least tolerance. Over all salt tolerance during growth of above mentioned three plants at higher level of salinity show that G. hirsutum was more tolerant, where as K. virginica showed the least tolerance at seedling stage.

Effects of salinity on seedling gemination and growth of early seedlings of the \(\textit{Najas indica}\) (Willd.) Cham

Vietnam Journal of Marine Science and Technology

Najas indica (Willd.) Cham. is a freshwater submerged aquatic vegetation. N. indica is an annual plant. Therefore, seeds in the sediment and the survival and growth of seedlings play an important role in re-establishing new populations of the species. The purpose of this study was to determine the seed density in the sediment, examine the effect of salinity on seedling germination from seeds, and assess the impact of the salinity on the growth of early seedlings of N. indica under the experimental condition. The seed density of N. indica was highest from September to November and the lowest in May to July 2018. Seedlings of the species were observed in the range of salinity from 0–15‰. No seedling was recorded at 20‰ salinity during the experimental period. The number of seedlings, growth rate, shoot length, and the number of internodes of seedlings of N. indica, all had maximum values at a salinity of 5‰, while leaf length tended to decrease with increasing salinity. The study show...

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