Leaf and stem anatomy of three halophytic Salicornieae (Chenopodiaceae) from Argentina

Abstract

Species belonging to the tribe Salicornieae (Chenopodiaceae), called jumes, are rich in salts, reflecting its halophytic nature. The leaf and stem anatomy of <i>Allenfolfea patagonica, Heterostachys olivascens</i> and <i>H. ritteriana</i> were studied. The material, collected in the Salitral de la Vidriera located 30 km from Bahia Blanca (Buenos Aires, Argentina), was fixed, dehydrated, embedded and stained with traditional techniques for plant anatomy. The foliar abaxial epidermis of the three species had papillate cells, while the adaxial one, usually did not. The stomata were sunken in the abaxial epidermis of the three species, and of the adaxial one of <i>A. patagonica</i>; they occurred at the epidermal level in both species of <i>Heterostachys</i>. The inverse dorsiventral structure of the mesophyll was a result of the appressed position of the leaves. The vascular bundles were embedded in aqueous tissue. The primary stem growth of <i>A. patagonica</i> showed a thin cortex and a wide pith, while in both species of <i>Heterostachys</i> the cortex was large and the pith small. Master cambium differentiated in all three species; it produces a secondary cortex and a sclereid matrix in which the vascular bundles, produced by secondary growth, are immersed. Although there were minor variations in anatomical details, a similar organization pattern can be corroborated in these Salicornieae.