Salt priming improves establishment of Distichlis spicata under saline conditions
M. Sargeant A B , P. Sale A and C. Tang AA Department of Agricultural Sciences, La Trobe University, Bundoora, Vic. 3086, Australia.
B Corresponding author. Email: mrsargeant@students.latrobe.edu.au
Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 57(12) 1259-1265 https://doi.org/10.1071/AR06103
Submitted: 31 March 2006 Accepted: 4 September 2006 Published: 21 November 2006
Abstract
Salt priming as a tool to establish Distichlis spicata (L.) Greene cv. Yensen-4a (NyPa Forage) plants into saline conditions was investigated in sand culture. Plants were pre-treated with 3 levels of salinity (0, 2, and 4 g NaCl/kg sand) for 36 days and then transplanted into 4 salinity treatments of 0, 2, 4, and 8 g NaCl/kg sand. Soil electrical conductivity (EC), Na and Cl concentrations in the sand, growth initiation, tiller formation, dry matter production, and salt excretion and uptake were measured. Plants pre-treated with 4 g NaCl/kg sand produced 6-fold more dry matter than plants pre-treated with 0 and 2 g NaCl/kg sand when transplanted into sand containing 2 g NaCl/kg. Survival and tiller formation were also higher with plants that had been pre-treated with 4 g NaCl/kg sand compared with plants pre-treated with 0 and 2 g NaCl/kg, when transplanted into 2 and 4 g NaCl/kg sand. The results suggest that salt priming improves establishment of Distichlis spicata when transplanted into low to moderate salinity conditions.
Additional keywords: halophyte, salt grass, NyPa Forage, salt tolerance, vegetative establishment, saltland pasture.
Acknowledgments
This work has been supported by the Australian Research Council, NyPa Australia, Department of Primary Industries Victoria, Buloke Park and Elders. We also thank Larry Jewell for his assistance in the glasshouse and photography work, and Sarah Sargeant and Kerryn Marshall for assistance during the plant harvest.
Babu S, Thirumurugan T
(2001) Effect of NaCl priming for increased salt tolerance in sesame (Sesamum indicum). Journal of Ecobiology 13, 309–311.
Hansen DJ,
Dayanandan P,
Kaufman PB, Brotherson JD
(1976) Ecological adaptations of salt marsh grass, Distichlis spicata (Gramineae), and environmental factors affecting its growth and distribution. American Journal of Botany 63, 635–650.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Kemp PR, Cunningham GL
(1981) Light, temperature and salinity effects on growth, leaf anatomy and photosynthesis of Distichlis spicata (L.) Greene. American Journal of Botany 68, 507–516.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Malcolm CV,
Lindley VA,
O’Leary JW,
Runciman HV, Barrett-Lennard EG
(2003) Halophyte and glycophyte salt tolerance at germination and the establishment of halophyte shrubs in saline environments. Plant and Soil 253, 171–185.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Marcum K
(1999) Salinity tolerance mechanisms of grasses in the Subfamily Chloridoideae. Crop Science 39, 1153–1160.
Oross JW, Thomson WW
(1982) The ultrastructure of the salt glands of Cynodon and Distichlis (Poaceae). American Journal of Botany 69, 939–949.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Sivritepe HO,
Eris A, Sivritepe N
(1999) The effects of priming treatments on salt tolerance in melon seeds. Acta Horticulturae 492, 287–295.
Sivritepe HO,
Sivritepe N,
Eris A, Turhan E
(2005) The effects of NaCl pre-treatments on salt tolerance of melons grown under long-term salinity. Scientia Horticulturae 106, 568–581.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Sivritepe N,
Sivritepe HO, Eris A
(2003) The effects of NaCl priming on salt tolerance in melon seedlings grown under saline conditions. Scientia Horticulturae 97, 229–237.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Umezawa T,
Shimizu K,
Kato M, Ueda T
(2000) Enhancement of salt tolerance in soybean with NaCl pretreatment. Physiologia Plantarum 110, 59–63.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
