Boron tolerance in wheat in relation to soil salinity

Abstract

SUMMARY A screenhouse study in Haryana in 1986/87 evaluated the effect of boron on the wheat cultivar WH147 grown in pots in a sandy soil at three salinities. Before sowing, 0–9 mg B/kg soil was added. Without added B the crop produced significantly more grain at electrical conductivity of the saturation extract (EC e ) 6 dS/m than at other salinities, but at EC e 8 dS/m yields were similar to those in nonsaline (EC e 0·8) soil. Grain yield in nonsaline soil was not affected significantly even at the highest concentration of added B, even though at the boot stage the shoots had accumulated as much as 307 mg B/kg. At EC e 6 and 8 dS/m, grain yield was significantly less with 3 and 1 mg added B/kg, respectively, than without added B, even though the B concentration in the shoots was only 72 and 31 mg/kg, respectively. The results indicated that B tolerance decreased with increasing salinity of the soil, even though B absorption by plants was 24–62% less in saline than in nonsaline soil at similar B concentrations. As B and salinity often occur together, threshold values of B in soil and plants for optimum growth of wheat will differ with the EC e of the soil. The results suggested that Ca:B ratio in wheat straw is not a reliable indicator of B toxicity in the soil.