PJB-2008-24
CAN LEAF WATER RELATION PARAMETERS BE USED AS SELECTION CRITERIA FOR SALT TOLERANCE IN SAFFLOWER (CARTHAMUS TINCTORIUS L.)
EJAZ HUSSAIN SIDDIQI* AND MUHAMMAD ASHRAF
Abstract
An experiment was conducted to assess inter-cultivar variation for salt tolerance in safflower (Carthamus tinctorius L.) using water relation parameters as selection criteria. Ten available lines, Safflower-31, Safflower-32, Safflower-33, Safflower-34, Safflower-35, Safflower-36, Safflower-37, Safflower-38, Safflower-39 and Safflower-78, were screened at 150 mM of NaCl at the vegetative stage. Salt stress caused a marked reduction in shoot fresh biomass and all water relations parameters, relative water content (RWC), water potential (Ψw), and osmotic potential (Ψs) except leaf turgor potential (Ψp). Accessions Safflower-36, Safflower-37 and Safflower-38 were higher, Safflower-39 and Safflower-78 lower, while the remaining accessions intermediate in shoot biomass production under saline conditions. Salt stress also adversely affected all water relation parameters, (RWC, Ψw, Ψs, and Ψp), however, the effect was more pronounced on leaf Ψw, Ψs, and Ψp. Although a great magnitude of inter-cultivar variation for salt tolerance was observed in the set of 10 accessions of safflower with respect to shoot biomass production, no one of the water relation parameters was found helpful in discriminating among the lines for salt tolerance.
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