Evaluating the Tolerance of Young Hybrid Poplar Trees to Recycled Waters High in Salinity and Boron

Abstract

The successful adoption of water recycling strategies in many arid regions will require crops able to tolerate poor-quality waters. We evaluated different clones for salt and boron (B) tolerance within each of seven genetically distinct genomic groups (e.g., deltoides, deltoides × nigra, trichocarpa × deltoides, trichocarpa × deltoides × maximowizcii, trichocarpa × deltoides × nigra, trichocarpa × nigra, trichocarpa × maximowizcii). During each evaluation period, different clones within each of the groups were irrigated with high sodium chloride (NaCl) salinity (i.e., 10–30 dS m−1) and B (i.e., 10 mg L−1) water up to a maximum of 150 days, for a 4-year testing period under micro-field plot conditions. Excessive accumulation (up to 6%) of chloride (Cl) likely caused toxicity symptoms (necrosis of the leaves) observed in the less tolerant clones, while leaf B concentrations rarely exceeded 300 mg kg−1 DM in any clone. Increased soil salinity likely hindered the uptake of B by the clones. Our results show that a wide range of selected Populus clones, of parentage trichocarpa × nigra, followed by deltoides × nigra show potential salt and B tolerance as young trees to recycled waters high in salinity and B.