Impacts of waterlogging and salinity on puccinellia (Puccinellia ciliata) and tall wheatgrass (Thinopyrum ponticum): zonation on saltland with a shallow water-table, plant growth, and Na+ and K+ concentrations in the leaves
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
8-21-2009
Journal Title
Plant and Soil
ISSN
Print: 0032-079X Electronic: 1573-5036
Keywords
Flooding, Growth, Halophyte, Hypoxia, Ion relations, Land capability, waterlogging, salinity, Puccinellia ciliata, Thinopyrum ponticum
Disciplines
Agronomy and Crop Sciences
Abstract
This paper focuses on the causes of zonation on agricultural land affected by secondary salinity between two halophytic grasses, puccinellia (Puccinellia ciliata Bor. cv. Menemen) and tall wheatgrass (Thinopyrum ponticum (Podp.) Z.-W. Liu & R.R.-C. Wang cv. Tyrrell). We hypothesized that the differences in zonation of puccinellia and tall wheatgrass were caused primarily by differences in the tolerance of these two species to waterlogging under saline conditions. This hypothesis was tested by conducting experiments in the field and in the glasshouse in irrigated sand cultures. At a saltland field site, locations dominated by puccinellia had ECe values that were consistently higher (11–12 dS/m in early spring, and 5–9 dS/m in late summer) than locations dominated by tall wheatgrass. However locations dominated by puccinellia also had a watertable that was shallower (0.07–0.09 m in the high rainfall season; 0.11–0.13 m in the low rainfall season) than locations dominated by tall wheatgrass. In the glasshouse both species had similar growth responses to salinity under drained conditions, with a 50% decrease in shoot dry mass (DM) at ∼300 mM NaCl. However, the combination of salinity (250 mM NaCl) and waterlogging increased puccinellia shoot DM by 150% but decreased shoot DM of tall wheatgrass by 90% (compared with salinity alone). Under saline/waterlogged conditions, puccinellia showed better exclusion of Na+ and maintenance of K+/Na+ in the shoots than tall wheatgrass. We conclude that the zonation of puccinellia and tall wheatgrass is associated with differences in their ion regulation which leads to substantial differences in their growth under saline/waterlogged conditions.
Recommended Citation
Jenkins, S., Barrett-Lennard, E.G. & Rengel, Z. Impacts of waterlogging and salinity on puccinellia (Puccinellia ciliata) and tall wheatgrass (Thinopyrum ponticum): zonation on saltland with a shallow water-table, plant growth, and Na+ and K+ concentrations in the leaves. Plant Soil 329, 91–104 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-009-0137-4
