To determine the effects of irrigation water salinity on seed germination and
seedling development of two rice cultivars, irrigation waters with low SAR
(below 3) were prepared in different salinity levels (control [0.5], 2, 4,
8, 12, 16, and 20 dS m-1) from different salinity sources (NaCl, MgS04, and
CaCl2 salts). The average germination rate was decreased for the cv. Baldo
20.19%, while for cv. Osmanc?k - 97 it was 26.73%. The average of the single
seedling dry weight of cv. Baldo was 0.2666 g, while for cv. Osmanc?k-97 it
was 0.2569 g. The average single seedling dry weight was 0.2940 g in the
control application. In parallel to the increased irrigation water salinity
level, the single seedling dry weight decreased. The irrigation water
salinity had not affected up to 4 dS m- 1 in terms of the germination rate
decrease and the single seedling dry weight of rice, but it started to be
affected when increased salinity level to 8 dS m-1 and it was more effective
at higher doses. Also, cv. Osmanc?k-97 was more sensitive to irrigation
water salinity than cv. Baldo. In conclusion, it turns out that the
irrigation water to be used in rice farming should not have salinity since
the tolerance of the rice plant against irrigation water salinity is low.