PERFORMANCE OF TWO HYBRIDS OF Helianthus annuus L. (SUNFLOWER) UNDER THE STRESS OF HEAVY METALS i.e. ZINC AND COPPER

Abstract

A pot experiment was conducted in University of Agriculture Faisalabad to assess the effect of Cu and Zn uptake on morphological, physiological, biochemical and yield attributes of Helianthus annuus L.(Sunflower). Two hybrids FH-612 and FH-621 were used during this study. The experiment was laid out in a Completely Randomized Design (CRD) with four treatments and three replicates. After 20 days of germination the plants were subjected to different levels of ZnCl2, CuSO4 and with their combination. Three harvests were taken at an interval of seven days each to study the growth rate, morphological, physiological and biochemical attributes. At the maturity of crops final harvest was taken and yield attributes were recorded. Data of various attributes were statistically analyzed. It was observed that both the metals caused negative effect on growth rate as well as the other parameters studied. The effect was more pronounced in the metal combination treatment. Ultimately the yield was significantly reduced due to the effect of metals in both hybrids. However hybrid FH-612 revealed slight tolerance towards Cu and Zn toxicity as compared to its counterpart. FH- 621. Thus it was concluded that Cu and Zn affect the morphological, physiological and yield attributes of sunflower when applied in higher concentration.