Study on the correlation Coefficients of morphological traits in lentil (Lens culinaris Medik) under salinity and drought stress

From common environmental stresses in Iran, salinity and drought that affect crops yield especially seedling establishment. In order to evaluate the effect of salinity and drought stress on seed germination and seedling growth of lentil (including local masses of Oshnavieh and Shahindezh) two separate factorial tests were done in a completely randomized design with three replications in Agricultural and Natural Resources Research Center of West Azerbaijan Province. Salinity and drought stress treatments included different levels of osmotic potential of sodium chloride and polyethylene glycol ۶۰۰۰ in three levels of -۴, -۸, and -۱۲ bar with control treatment (distilled water). The results showed that applying the levels of salinity and drought had significant effects on all traits and decreasing on the studied all traits, including the percentage of germination, rate of germination, Radicle length, plumule length and fresh weight of seedling. Investigation of correlation coefficients between all traits under salinity and drought stresses showed there is a significant positive correlations, so that in the study of drought stress, the highest and lowest correlation coefficient, respectively, the plumule length with fresh weight of seedling (r=۰.۹۷۱) and percentage of germination with radical length (r=۰.۸۴۴). While in the study of salinity stress, the highest and lowest correlation coefficient, are respectively, the percentage of germination with rate of germination (r=۰.۹۷۶) and radical length with percentage of germination (r=۰.۷۳۴). So we can use the traits of the fresh weight of seedlings under drought stress condition and the rate of germination under salinity stress condition as evaluation and selection criteria of lentil tolerating these stresses and study further.

Keywords:

stress , germination , plumule , radical , seedlings