PJB-2020-391
Exogenous application of salicylic acid enhances salt stress tolerance in lemongrass (Cymbopogon flexuosus Steud. Wats)
Zeeshan Rehman, Abrar Hussain, Shanzay Saleem, Sheza Ayaz Khilji and Zahoor Ahmad Sajid
Abstract
Salt stress is one of the key factors causing multifarious adverse effects on the growth, yield, and quality of crops worldwide. The present study was carried out to investigate the adverse effect of salinity (100 mM) in Lemongrass (Cymbopogon flexuosus L.) and to evaluate the ameliorative effect of salicylic acid (SA: 0.1, 0.5 and 1.0 mM) against salinity stress under field conditions. Various morphological and biochemical parameters were analysed after 60 days of salt and salicylic acid treatment to pot-grown plants. It was observed that when Lemongrass plants were irrigated with salt (NaCl) it drastically affected all the tested parameters, however various SA concentrations significantly minimized the negative effects of salinity when applied exogenously in the form of foliar spray on leaves. Particularly by 0.5 mM salicylic acid, this increases shoot/root length by 17.40 and 3.43 cm as compared to control i.e., 14.02 and 2.60 cm, respectively under saline stress. Salicylic acid possibly reduced the damage caused by salt toxicity and ROS by increasing POD, CAT and SOD activities. This study hints at a possibility that SA (0.5 mM) can be effectively used for the mitigation of salt stress in lemongrass, however, further experimentation under field condition is necessary to evaluate and harness the potential benefit of SA for normal plant growth and yield
To Cite this article:
Rehman, Z., A. Hussain, S. Saleem, S.A. Khilji and Z.A. Sajid. 2022. Exogenous application of salicylic acid enhances salt stress tolerance in lemongrass (Cymbopogon flexuosus Steud. Wats). Pak. J. Bot., 54(1): DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.30848/PJB2022-2(13)
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