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Abstract
The underlying mechanisms by which excessive salinity reduces plant growth are not well understood. A few reports indicate that salinity reduces the hydraulic conductivity of the roots in salt sensitive legumes such as bean and lupin: However salinity had little effect on root conductivity in barley, a cereal plant which is relatively salt tolerant. In order to determine whether roots of other cereal plants respond like those of barley, we investigated the effects of salinity on root growth and root hydraulic conductivity in maize seedlings. The length of the primary roots was reduced by 54% after 4d exposure to 0.1 strength Hoagland's solution salinized with 100 mM NaCl. Root length was only reduced by 20% when 10 mM calcium was also added to the salinized root medium. Salinization with 100 mM NaCl reduced hydraulic conductivity in the apical 4 cm of the primary roots by 80% (from 4.7±1.5x108 m/s/MPa to 1.0±0.3xl0‐8 m/s/MPa) and by 51% when 10 mM calcium was also added.
Notes
An earlier report of this Root‐soil workshop presentation was published in Isr. J. Botany 39:239–297(1990).
