Abstract

Asrar Sarwar and Zahoor Aslam

Excess of salts in the root zone of plants adversely affects their growth. It may result in loss of stands, reduced rates of plant growth, reduced yields and in severe cases, total crop failure. Salinity limits water uptake by plants by reducing the osmotic potential and thus the total potential of the soil water, additionally certain salts may be specifically toxic to plants or may upset nutritional balance, if they are present in excessive amount or proportion. The problem of increasing salinity implicates the selection and development of salt tolerant plants, in addition to other preventive and management measures. The present study intends to illustrate the effect of root zone salinity on the survival, growth, ionic activity and nutritive value of Beri (Zizyphus mauritiana lam) and Jaman (Eugenia jambolana Lamk). Experiments were conducted in pots filled with gravel applied with treatment solutions containing nutrients and salts to produce salinity levels of ECi-5, 10, 15, 20 and 25 dSm-1 . The relative dry matter production separately for browseable material, shoot and root against salinity was calculated as mean of four replications determine after 30 days of transplantation. Three parts of the plant showed almost similar growth reduction; however, the reduction of root growth being slightly more severe for both the plants.