Relationship between salinity stress and ion uptake of hyacinth (Hyacinthus orientalis)

Salinity is one of the most severe environmental factors limiting the agricultural productivity. Salt stress is also of rising importance in landscaping. Salinity is a reality in coastal area and in countries where de-icing salts are applied to roadways. Plants are affected in a different way by amount of salt and depending on their growth and development stage. Major saline ions can affect nutrient uptake which may cause reductions in plant growth. Hyacinth (Hyacinthus orientalis L.) is grown worldwide as a commercially important bulbous ornamental plant. In this study the effect of salt stress on ion uptake of hyacinth plants were investigated. The plants were irrigated with different NaCl concentration by the addition of 0, 25, 50, 75, 100, 200, 400 and 600 mM for 15 days with two days intervals in soil medium under controlled conditions. Salt treatments were imposed to plants at the beginning of flowering stage. According to the results Na+ uptake were significantly increased by salt stress. The higher concentration of NaCl treatments (75 mM and upper) caused sharply reduction on K+/Na+ and Ca2+/Na+ ratios. This study showed that measuring of Na+ concentrations and calculating the ratios of K+/Na+ and Ca+2/Na+, in leaf tissue are reliable physiological parameters for predicting salt damage of hyacinth plant