The present work was carried out to uncover the effect of salinity stress on shoot moisture percentage, pigment content and lipid composition of Ephedra alata Decne. The results suggested that salinity caused significant decrease in plant moisture content. The chl. a, b and carotenoids showed significant decrease with increasing concentration of salt. Total pigment content also showed decline at all salt stress levels. Salt stress caused significant decrease in total lipids (TL), triacylglycerol (TG) and sterol (S) accompanied with an increase in diacylglycerol (DG), sterol ester (SE), and non-esterified fatty acids (FAA) of E. alata. Moreover, saline stress caused significant decrease in all phospholipid fractions except phosphatidic acid which increases during salt stress. Salinity stress resulted in increase of saturated fatty acids and decreases the percentage of un-saturated fatty acids in E. alalta.

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Salt stress is one of the most significant abiotic stresses that substantially negatively impact plant growth and productivity. However, a slew of research thus far has investigated the ameliorating properties of arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) symbiosis and their potential to improve plant tolerance to salt stress. The present study aimed to evaluate and compare the role of mycorrhizal inocula obtained from Sabkha (S-AMF) and non-Sabkha (NS-AMF) habitats of Saudi Arabia on the morphological, physiological, and biochemical behaviors of the Lasiurus scindicus plant. For this reason, arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) isolated from Sabkha and non-Sabkha soils were treated with salinity-exposed L. scindicus. The results revealed that the AMF-treated plants had higher growth metrics and increased synthesis of photosynthetic pigments, which were reduced by salt stress. Furthermore, the application of AM symbiosis induced an increase in the activities of the antioxidant system, which resulted in a reduction of the plant oxidative damage. It was also found that the increased accumulation of proline and phenols acted as a protective measure. However, plants inoculated with S-AMF had the highest ameliorating responses on all the studied parameters compared to NS-AMF. This could be attributed to the presence of habitat-specific AMF, which may have induced adaptive plasticity in plants to tolerate or resist extreme salinity. However, further study in exploring the S-AMF diversity is needed to make it an ecofriendly choice for the restoration of salinity-affected ecosystems.

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Taking the importance of agricultural production sustainability with limited resources to use efficiency in an arid area, afield experiment was designed to investigate the effect of three, Acacia trees (Acacia nilotica, A. seyal, and A. tortilis) planting combination on soil fertility and Sorghum bicolor L. growth and physiological performance. The sorghum planted in 7 strips between 14 rows of Acacia trees planting combinations and one treeless strip as control. Acacia species plantations significantly increase soil fertility in terms of available nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), potassium (K) and organic carbon (OC) contents as compared to control, highest level of N and P content (59.01 ± 1.45 and 58.77 ± 1.10 mg/kg) was reported in strip between rows of A. tortilis. Although the highest net photosynthesis rate (P_n) and stomatal conductance (g_s) recorded in plants grown between rows of pure A. torilis, and rows of A. torilis–A. seyal, but different Acacia significantly enhanced sorghum growth and physiology with reference to net photosynthesis rate, stomatal conductance and chlorophyll fluorescence (chlF). The results stated linear relation between soil nutrients (N, P, K), P_n, and chlF increasing soil fertility improve physiological performance of sorghum. In conclusion, the three Acacia improve soil fertility and sorghum growth. Generally, this plantation trial can be environment-friendly alternative agricultural practices in Saudi Arabia or any area with a similar ecological condition to amend the soil and improve crop performance.