Germination of chia seeds submitted to saline stress.

R Stefanello,U R Nunes,B B Viana,L A S Neves,P C H Goergen

doi:10.1590/1519-6984.192140

R Stefanello, U R Nunes + Show 3 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1590/1519-6984.192140

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Abstract

Salinity, of both soil and water, is one of the main causes of crop yield decline. Within this context, the objective of this study was to evaluate the influence of different salts on the germination of chia seeds. The experiment was conducted in a BOD chamber at a constant temperature of 20 °C and in the presence of light. The seeds were placed on paper soaked with aqueous solutions of calcium chloride (CaCl2), sodium chloride (NaCl), potassium chloride (KCl), and magnesium chloride (MgCl2), at the osmotic potentials zero, -0.10, -0.20, -0.30, and -0.40 MPa. The effect of the salinity was evaluated using a germination test, with counts on days 7 and 14 after sowing. Based on the results, chia seeds tolerate concentrations of NaCl to -0.4 MPa and KCl to -0.20 MPa. The salts CaCl2 and MgCl2 had a negative effect on the germination and vigor of the chia seeds for the osmotic potentials -0.30 MPa and -0.20 MPa, respectively.

Highlights

Water is one of the most influential factors that can compromise seed germination because it is responsible for reactivating the metabolism and is involved in all stages of the germination process (Marcos-Filho, 2015)
Considering that obtaining knowledge about the best cultivation conditions and identifying the degree of salt tolerance of species is necessary when using water and soil affected by salts, and to expand the cultivation of S. hispanica in these areas, the objective of this work was to evaluate the influence of different salts on the germination of chia seeds
The toxic effect of salts on the seed germination process was evaluated using the tests listed below: Germination (%): conducted based on four repetitions of 100 seeds distributed in plastic boxes, on germitest paper moistened with distilled water or saline solution (2.5 times the weight of the paper)

Summary

Introduction

Water is one of the most influential factors that can compromise seed germination because it is responsible for reactivating the metabolism and is involved in all stages of the germination process (Marcos-Filho, 2015). Tolerance to salinity during this process is crucial for establishing plants. The response of plants to excess salt depends on the species, genotype, and exposure time (Munns and Tester, 2008). The performance of plants under these conditions is influenced by osmotic and ionic effects that promote changes in metabolic activities of cells and in the stages of cellular elongation, which affects plant growth and in extreme cases can kill the organism (Taiz and Zeiger, 2013).

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