Abstract:
Soil salinity is a major
agricultural constraint in many countries.
Plants’ response to salinity depends on the
species and the salt concentration in the
soil. The objective of this study was to test
the resistance of three leguminous plants -
common bean (variety ‘El-Jadida’), broad
bean (variety ‘Claro de Luna’), and alfalfa
(variety ‘Diamon’) - to several salinity
rates and to show which one was more
resistant to salt stress. This study was
carried out under controlled conditions,
with six NaCl concentrations (0, 1, 3, 6,
and 9 g/kg) added to a mixture of potting
soil and sand. A completely randomised
design was used, where the three legumes
were cultivated with different salt
concentrations to determine the effect of
these doses on fresh biomass, dry mass,
and physiological parameters (sodium and
proline content). The results showed the
negative effect of salinity on fresh biomass
and dry mass of shoots and roots. Claro de
Luna, the broad bean variety, was more
adapted to salinity than alfalfa and
common bean. The amount of sodium in
the shoots and roots of the three species
increased with increasing salinity. Alfalfa
may play a role in soil desalination; at
53.33 mM NaCl, 100 mg alfalfa dry mass
absorbed 4.5 mg Na per pot, which
corresponded to the uptake of about 0.6 kg
Na per hectare of soil. Proline content
increased with increasing salt
concentrations.
