Effect of Salinity Stress and Surfactant Treatment on Physiological Traits and Nutrient Absorption of Fenugreek Plant

Abstract

Salinity is considered as a major abiotic stress affecting crop production in arid and semi-arid regions in the world. Surfactants can improve water-use efficiency in saline soils and improve crop yield. This study was conducted to evaluate the effect of salinity stress and surfactant treatments on photosynthetic pigments and nutrition elements of fenugreek in the Crop and Soil Science greenhouse at the Pennsylvania State University (University Park, PA, USA) in 2013. The experiment was conducted using a 5 × 3 factorial randomized complete block design with three replications. Factor A consisted of five salinity levels [0, 4, 6, 8, and 10 ds m–1 sodium chloride (NaCl)] while factor B consisted of three nonionic surfactant levels (0, 1, and 3 ppm). The results indicated a stepwise reduction in photosynthetic pigments of fenugreek as salt stress increased, however, Peroxidase and polyphenol oxidase activity increased in fenugreek leaves as salinity stress increased. Levels of surfactant application had different effects on nutrient uptake. Some nutrient elements such as sodium, phosphorus, copper, manganese, and zinc content increased while others decreased at high salinity conditions. Surfactant application rate of 3 ppm at moderate and high salinity levels and 1 ppm at lower salinity levels had a good performance in enhancing the total photosynthetic and carotenoid activities in fenugreek.