The Response Strategy of Maize, Pea and Broad Bean Plants to Different Osmotic Potential Stress

Abstract

This investigation was conducted to study the tolerance strategy of maize, broad bean and pea plants to salinity stress with exogenous applications of proline or phenylalanine on seed germination and seedlings growth. From the results obtained, it can be observed that osmotic stress affected adversely the rate of germination in maize, broad bean and pea plants. The excessive inhibition was more prominent at higher concentration of NaCl. The seeds and grains tested were exhibited some differential responses to salinity, in a manner that the inhibitory effect of salinity on seed germination ran in the order, maize higher than broad bean and the later was higher than pea plant. Treatment with proline or phenylalanine (100 ppm) significantly increased these seed germination and seedlings growth characteristics even at lowest salinity level tested.

Keywords

• Salinity
• broad bean
• maize
• pea
• proline
• phenylalanine