Vol. 11, Issue 7 (2022)

Author(s):
Dr. Dhwani Sharma and Dr. Arunabh Joshi

Abstract:
Crop plants that are tolerant to soil salinity are needed for a sustainable food production in areas where there is salt build-up caused by irrigation practices. Twenty-four groundnut (Arachis hypogaea L.) genotypes were screened in laboratory and field studies to identify those tolerant to soil salinity. Plants were irrigated with, 50, 100, and 300mM NaCl solution, prepared artificially from table salt. Germination rate and percentage germination decreased with increasing salinity. UG158, UG161, UG163 UG168 UG172, UG175, UG177, UG178, UG179 UG182 UG5, GG7 and PM2 germinate up to 300mM, while others germinated with low percentages. Agronomic characters were significantly reduced by salinity above 50mM NaCl. Biomass and growth decreased with increasing salinity. Data could not be taken for the genotypes UG169, UG175 and UG162 at 300mM as a result of complete mortality of genotypes. The traits from the salt tolerant genotypes could be a source for developing salt tolerant variants for improvement in groundnut production.