Potential of Bacopa monnieri (L.) Wettst and Sesuvium verrucosum Raf. as an agronomic management alternative to recover the productivity of saline soils

Abstract

Water scarcity and increasing salinity are the main limiting environmental factors directly affecting the establishment and development of agroecosystems. The objective of this study was to assess the capacity of the halophytes Bacopa monnieri (L.) Wettst and Sesuvium verrucosum Raf., to improve the chemical properties of a saline soil during a 240-day period in the field so as to subsequently examine their potential to associate with Zea mays in the previously desalinated surface. The treatments proposed were [T1 (reference soil sample), T2 (soil + B. monnieri), T3 (soil + S. verrucosum), and T4 (soil + B. monnieri + S. verrucosum)]. The results showed that the association of the species B monnieri and S. verrucosum has the potential to enhance the chemical characteristics of the severely saline and clayey soil, showing ECe reductions of 11.13–7.97 dS/m and pH of 7.84–7.42, as well as increase in soil porosity from 54.71% to 57.23%. It was also found that the association of these plants have a phytodesalination capacity of 1.21 t Na+ ha−1, this served to prepare the conditions for the growth of the Z. mays and generate yields of 8.5 t ha−1.