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Pak. J. Bot., 44: 27-35, Special Issue March 2012.

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CHANGES IN MINERAL COMPOSITION, UPTAKE AND USE EFFICIENCY OF SALT STRESSED WHEAT (TRITICUM AESTIVUM L.) PLANTS RAISED FROM SEED TREATED WITH TRIACONTANOL

SHAGUFTA PERVEEN¹, MUHAMMAD SHAHBAZ^1* AND MUHAMMAD ASHRAF^1,2

Abstract: The role of pre-sowing treatment with triacontanol (TRIA) on two cultivars [MH-97 (moderately salt sensitive) and S-24 (salt tolerant)] of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) was assessed under saline and non-saline conditions. Twenty four day old plants raised from seed pretreated with TRIA for 24 h were subjected to 0 (control) or 150 mM NaCl. After 21 days of salt application, changes in shoot and root mineral nutrient concentrations, nutrient uptake and use efficiency, and shoot and root K⁺/Na⁺ ratios were measured. Salt stress (150 mM NaCl) significantly increased the shoot and root Na⁺ and Cl^- contents, while decreased that of K⁺, and K⁺/Na⁺ ratios in shoot and root of both cultivars under saline conditions. The uptake of shoot Na⁺ increased significantly, while that of the remaining nutrients decreased under saline conditions. Shoot and root nutrient (Na⁺, K⁺, Ca²⁺, Cl^-) use efficiency (NUE) decreased significantly in both cultivars under saline conditions. The exogenous application of TRIA as pre-sowing seed treatment significantly increased the shoot Na⁺ and K⁺ contents, shoot K⁺ uptake and shoot Cl^- use efficiency, while its effect was non-significant on the remaining attributes in both cultivars under non-saline or saline conditions. Overall, the performance of S-24 was better than MH-97 in shoot and root K⁺ and Ca²⁺ contents and the uptake of these nutrients under both saline and non-saline conditions.

¹Department of Botany, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad

²Second Affiliation: King Saud University Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

*Corresponding author’s e-mail: shahbazmuaf@yahoo.com