Salt Tolerance of 74 Turfgrass Cultivars in Nutrient Solution Culture

Abstract

Turfgrass may experience significant salt stress due to poor water quality, insufficient leaching, or exposure to environmental contaminants. Establishment of salt‐tolerant turfgrass cultivars is one possible method of mitigating the effects of salts in irrigation water or the soil environment. The objective of this research was to evaluate the relative salt tolerance of cool‐season turfgrasses in a controlled environment using digital image analysis. Six replications of 74 cool‐season turfgrasses were established using recommended seeding rates in 10.16‐cm by 10.16‐cm pots of silica sand for 12 wk, and suspended in two 760‐L tubs of half‐strength Hoagland solution. Following an adaptation period, all pots were exposed to salinity levels of 4, 14, and 24 dS m−1 successively, each for 2 wk. Digital images were collected after each exposure level using a custom light box, and analyzed for percent green tissue. Cultivars of tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea Schreb.) were found to be most salt tolerant, with ‘Wolfpack II’ and ‘Jaguar 4G’ performing best after the 14 and 24 dS m−1 exposure levels, respectively. Many fine fescue entries performed well, including slender creeping red fescues (Festuca rubra L. ssp. litoralis) ‘Sealink’, ‘Seabreeze GT’, and ‘Shoreline’. Trial entries found to have consistent salt tolerance at all levels may be used to guide recommendations for turfgrass managers and breeders and have potential for use in salt‐tolerant mixtures.

The sensitivity of Lolium perenne and Poa pratensis to salinity and drought during the seed germination and under different photoperiod conditions

“…'Bila'. These results agree with Friell et al (2013) investigations which showed the least salt tolerance of P. pratensis varieties compare to other lawn grasses.…”

“…Plant response to stress conditions during the germination of seeds does not necessarily correlate with vegetative growth. Literature suggests that in the seedling stage varieties of L. perenne show different tolerance of salinity stress (Hujun et al, 2001;Borowski, 2008 a;Kusvuran et al, 2015) whereas P. pratensis should be pointed as moderately sensitive (Friell et al, 2013). Because of that, screening and breeding cool-season turfgrass varieties that are salttolerant during both seed germination and vegetative growth becomes important (Dai et al, 2009).…”

Soil Salinity of an Urban Park after Long‐Term Irrigation with Saline Ground Water

“…1) showed salinity levels ranging from <1 to 43 dS m -1 , with levels of 10 dS m -1 or greater for the majority of the park (>80% of the area), which exceeded the tolerance limits for cool-season tall fescue. Although Friell et al (2013) showed that tall fescue can tolerate salinity levels of up to 24 dS m -1 for 2 wk in solution culture, Marcum (1999) reported a general threshold of 7 dS m -1 for tall fescue at which a 50% decrease of growth can be observed. Soil salinity at the Chamizal Park is no longer conducive to a high quality stand of tall fescue.…”

Effectiveness of glycinebetaine foliar application in relieving salt stress symptoms in two turf‐grasses

“…; Friell et al . ). Weeping alkaligrass is a halophyte cool season grass that has a high salinity tolerance when cultivated in sodium‐rich soils or in NaCl‐rich hydroponic cultures (Tarasoff et al .…”

“…Weeping alkaligrass (Puccinellia distans (L.) Parl) and tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea Schreb.) are turf-grasses that have been widely reported as salinity tolerant (Alshammary et al 2004;Marcum 2006;Gao et al 2012;Friell et al 2013). Weeping alkaligrass is a halophyte cool season grass that has a high salinity tolerance when cultivated in sodium-rich soils or in NaCl-rich hydroponic cultures (Tarasoff et al 2007).…”