Salt tolerance of sesame genotypes at germination, vegetative, and maturity stages

Salinity and moisture stress are main limiting factors of agricultural development on and and semi-arid lands. The objective of this study was to evaluate the tolerance of sesame (Sesamum indicum L.) genotypes to salinity. Salinity treatments in rooting media were 0.5, 2.0, 3.5, 5.0, and 7.0 dS m(-1) using calcium chloride (CaCl2). Germination of 50 genotypes was evaluated. Twenty seeds of each cultivar were set in paper towels and moistened with the saline solutions for 15 days. Five germination-selected genotypes were seeded in 10-kg pots, and soil salinity was adjusted to the same treatments. Highly significant effects were found for dry matter at 45 (DM 45) days after planting (DAP), at 90 DAP (DM 90), and leaf area (LA). Growth differences among genotypes were only observed for DM 90. These data suggest that sesame tolerance to CaCl2 salinity improved through the growing season and may be genetically controlled.