Salicylic Acid Efficacy on Resistance of Garlic Plants (Allium sativum, L.) to Water Salinity Stress on Growth, Yield and its Quality

Abstract

This experiment was conducted and replicated during both winter seasons of 2013/2014 and 2014/2015, respectively at Soil Salinity Laboratory, Alexandria. This research was conducted to study the effects of water salinity and the application of salicylic acid (SA) on garlic growth performance, yield and its quality. Four levels of saline irrigation water treatments were used; i.e., 435 (fresh tap water as a control), 1500, 3000 and 4500 ppm. Three levels of salicylic acid treatments were foliar applied on garlic plants at the rates of 0, 150 and 300 ppm. The spraying was applied biweekly. The results indicated that the vegetative characters, yield and yield quality were; negatively, affected with increasing saline water levels from 435 up to 4500 ppm. Spraying SA on the leaves garlic plants led to decrease the negatively effects of the saline water on the tested characters. The best results were given when salicylic acid was sprayed at the concentration of 300 pm. The interaction between saline water salinity and SA concentrations did not show any significant effects on all the studied garlic characters. Also, data appeared that spraying garlic plants with SA at the concentration of 300 ppm exhibited the highest values for bulb fresh weight (g/plant), average clove weight (g), no. of cloves per bulb, bulb diameter (cm) and nick bulb diameter (cm) with any of the tested saline water levels. Spraying garlic plants with SA resulted in relatively increasing potassium concentration in comparison to sodium content and this result might be indicated that SA application improved the performance of garlic plant to the stress of irrigation with saline water. The recommendation of this research; based on the obtained results under the conditions of this study, is spraying garlic plants with SA at the concentration of 300 ppm biweekly when having to irrigate with saline water to reduce the adverse effect of saline water on the economic characteristics of the garlic crop.

Salicylic acid had the potential to enhance tolerance in horticultural crops against abiotic stress

“…SA improves mineral uptake from the roots toward other parts of the plant. Shama et al. (2016) demonstrated that an exogenous spray of SA 300 ppm revealed excellent vegetative and reproductive growth with enhanced level of minerals, such as potassium, while a decrease in sodium levels was recorded in garlic growing under salinity.…”