Physiological and Growth Responses of Seashore Paspalum to Salinity

Abstract

Abstract Two cultivars of Seashore Paspalum ( Paspalum vaginatum Swartz.), ‘Adalayd’ (‘Excaliber’) and ‘FSP-1’, were grown in solution culture at 6 levels of salinity derived from synthetic sea water. Cultivars differed in changes of leaf water potential, leaf water potential components, and in growth responses to increased salinity. ‘Adalayd’ exhibited a linear decrease whereas ‘FSP-1’ exhibited a quadratic decrease in leaf water potential with increasing salinity. Leaf osmotic potentials decreased linearly for both cultivars, but there was a significant interaction. Leaf turgor potential decreased linearly for ‘Adalayd’ but quadratically for ‘FSP-1’. ‘FSP-1’ had greater tolerance to salinity in solution culture than Adalayd.