Growth, Physiology, and Water Status of Sissoo Spinach (Alternanthera sissoo) Under Different Irrigation Regimes

Abstract

The rising popularity of the Sissoo spinach is growing in the vegetable industry along with the increase in its demand. However, water stress conditions may affect the plants' growth, physiology, and water status. Hence, the research study aims to evaluate Sissoo spinach's growth, physiological parameters, and water status once subjected to water deficit. Besides, it also focuses on determining the optimum water requirement for Sissoo spinach. There were four different water treatments consisting of 100% (well-watered), 75% (moderate water deficit), 50% (high water deficit), and 25% (severe water deficit) water treatments arranged in Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with five replications in the greenhouse. The research findings show that the results are statistically significant for most parameters: plant height, number of leaves, chlorophyll content, stomatal conductances, plant water status, and chlorophyll fluorescence. Contrarily, the stem diameter, fresh weight, dry weight, and leaf area data do not show any significant differences. As it comes to the point of research findings, the optimum water requirement for Sissoo spinach was 50% water treatment. This is crucial to prevent unnecessary, avoidable water application onto plants.