The Mineral Composition of Date Palm Fruits (Phoenix dactylifera L.) under Low to High Salinity Irrigation.

Rania Dghaim,Rola Al Ghali,Dalia Haroun,Zied Hammami,Linda Smail

doi:10.3390/molecules26237361

Abstract

Adaptability to salinity varies between different varieties of date palm trees. This research aims to explore the long-term impact of different salinity irrigation levels on the mineral content of 13 date palm varieties grown in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Date varieties were grown using three irrigation water salinity levels of 5, 10 and 15 dS m−1. The mineral composition (B, Ca, Cu, Fe, K, Mg, Na, P and Zn) of date palm fruits was determined using Inductively Coupled Plasma-Optical Emission Spectrometry (ICP-OES). High salinity levels showed no effect on the mineral content of Ajwat AlMadinah, Naghal, Barhi, Shagri, Abu Maan, Jabri, Sukkari and Rothan varieties. All date varieties remained good sources of dietary potassium, magnesium, manganese and boron even at high salinity levels. Increased salinity had no effect on the percent Daily Value (%DV) categories of most of the analyzed minerals. While no genotypes showed a general adaptation to different saline environments, Barhi, Ajwat Al Madinah, Khinizi, Maktoumi and Shagri varieties were more stable towards salinity variation. In the UAE, the genotype x saline-environment interaction was found to be high which makes it impossible to attribute the variation in mineral content to a single varietal or salinity effect.

Highlights

IntroductionThe date palm (Phoenix dactylifera L.) is traditionally cultivated in arid regions of the world, including the Arabian Peninsula
The main objectives of this research are to explore the effect of high salinity irrigation on the mineral content of the fruit of elite date varieties commonly grown in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and to identify the salt-tolerant varieties which provide a significant contribution to the percent Daily Values
Screening date palm varieties for their salinity adaptive capacity showed that certain varieties, mainly Ajwat AlMadinah, Naghal, Barhi, Shagri, Abu Maan, Jabri, Sukkari and Rothan, can endure a relatively high soil salinity level with no visible effect on the mineral content

Summary

Introduction

The date palm (Phoenix dactylifera L.) is traditionally cultivated in arid regions of the world, including the Arabian Peninsula. It is one of the oldest fruit trees, a key component of the food system, and is recognized as a symbol of prosperity in the Arab world. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has the largest number of date palms of any single country in the world. It has over 40 million date palm trees, with more than 200 cultivars, 68 of which have commercial importance.

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