Effect of Sodium Chloride on Water Relations and Some Organic Osmotica in arid Zone Plant Species Melilotus indica (L. ) All.

Abstract

Two populations of Melilotus indica (L) All. (a salt tolerant and a non-tolerant. IM-83) were grown for 42 days in sand culture salinized with 0 (control), 80, 160, and 240  mol/m³ NaCl. The salt tolerant population produced significantly greater plant dry biomass than the non-tolerant population. The salt tolerant population maintained low  leaf osmotic potential and high turgor potential compared with that of the non-tolerant line. The salt tolerant population maintained low leaf osmotic potential and high turgor potential compared with that of the non-tolerant line. The considerably low leaf osmotic  potential of the salt tolerant population can be easily related to its high contents of leaf soluble sugars, free amino acids and proline. Of these parameters soluble sugars played a major role in lowering the osmotic potential of the salt tolerant population and hence seemed to have contributed partly to its high salt tolerance.