Effects of Temperature, Light and Salinity on Germination of Salsola crassa (Amaranthaceae) Seeds from Different Years

Abstract

Salsola crassa is a halophytic plant species from the Amaranthaceae family. In this study we aimed to find out the effect of temperature, light, salinity, and age of seeds on germination ability of S. crassa. Seeds of the species were collected in 2013 and 2014, and seed wings which are known as perianth segments, were removed before the experiments. Both seeds from different years were germinated under the same conditions. Two temperature regimes at 5°C/16°C and 8°C/20°C were used under dark and daily photoperiodism at 12 h intervals for determination of the effects of temperature. Seeds were germinated under different NaCl concentrations. Seeds that did not germinate under saline conditions were taken into recovery and the viability of the seeds that did not germinate after recovery were tested with the Triphenyl Tetrazolium Chloride (TTC) test. As a result, photoperiodism positively influenced the germination rate (p<0.05) of seeds from both years. Even though an increase in salinity decreased the germination rate it can be said that S. crassa is an euhalophyte whose seeds can even germinate at 1800 mM NaCl. Although the age of seeds is an important parameter for seed germinability, there was not any statistically significant difference between the seed viability and final germination rates for the S. crassa seeds from 2013 and 2014.