Effect of salinity on tissue nutrient contents of the four dryland tree species of Indus flood plains

Salinity is a common issue of semi-arid and arid lands rendering them unfit for agriculture. Saline wastelands can be converted into productive ecosystems by rehabilitating them with salt tolerant native tree species. The objective of this work was to study the effect of NaCl salinity on tissue nutrient contents of the four dryland tree species. Saplings were grown in pots under nonsaline and high salinity conditions. After eighteen weeks the plants were harvested and their tissue nutrient contents were analyzed. Results revealed that all species accumulated high amounts of Na+ under saline conditions, while concentrations of N, P and Mg2+ decreased in their tissues. Concentrations of K+ and Ca2+ showed more variable trend in various tissues in response to increase in soil salinity. Na+: K+ ratios of roots (1.57), stems (1.27), and leaves (1.66) of salinized Salvadora oleoides plants were lowest among all the four species. Root Na+: K+ ratio of salinized plants was significantly higher for Prosopis cineraria (7.10), while these ratios for stem (1.85) and leaf (3.42) were highest for Tamarix aphylla. Plants of P. cineraria showed lowest Stem-Na+/root-Na+ ratio (0.30) when subjected to salinity. Results showed that salinity induces nutrient deficiency in all species. Salinity tolerance of these species can be attributed to their ability to (i) restrict translocation of Na+ from roots to stem; (ii) keeping low tissue Na+: K+ ratios; and (iii) selectivity of K+ and Ca2+ over Na+, and can be used for the screening of salt-tolerant ecotypes for the rehabilitation of saline wastelands.