Effect of salinity stress on germination and growth parameters of seedlings of isabgol (plantago ovata L.)

A major problem of arid and semi-arid regions is environmental stresses like salinity. To study the effect of salinity on germination characteristics of isabgol, a completely randomized experiment was conducted under controlled conditions (germinator) with three replications in Department of Agronomy, Birjand Branch of Islamic Azad University, Birjand, Iran in 2011. The experimental treatments included different salinity levels (0, 2, 4, 6 and 8 ds m-1). The studied traits included seedling length and dry weight, germination percentage and rate, and seed viability index. According with results significant differences were observed in seedling length, seedling weight, germination percentage, germination rate and seed viability index of isabgol seeds under different salinity stress levels. Means comparison for these traits revealed that as salinity stress was increased from 0 to 8 ds m-1, seedling length, germination percentage and seed viability index were decreased by 30.4, 34.2 and 54.2%, respectively. In total, it can be concluded that salinity stress significantly decreased all studied traits.