Effects of sodium chloride on the growth and ion accumulation in soybean

Three pot experiments were done to study: (1) the effects of sodium chloride concentration in soil (0, 0.1, 0.2 and 0.3% by dry weight of soil) on germination percentage of soybean (Glycine Max (L.) Merrill) variety, SJ.1, SJ.2, SJ.4 and William; (2) the after effects of sodium chloride in seeds on germination of SJ.1, SJ.2, SJ.4 and William soybean when seeds had been previously soaked in sodium chloride solution for certain periods and (3) the effects of sodium chloride and phosphorus on growth, yield and ion accumulation of soybean variety SJ.1. The results of the first experiment revealed that germination percentage, height, root length and dry weight of salt treated seedling were reduced when salinity were increased and SJ.1 tended to grow satisfactorily in saline media. Persoaking the seeds longer in the salt solution, they tended to absorbed more sodium and chloride ions. Although SJ.1 seeds accumulated more chloride during the pretreatments than seeds of other cultivars, their germination percentage was much better when compared with the other varieties of soybean. Increasing salinity levels of the soils resulted in the reduction of plant height, dry weight of leaf, stem and root, leaf area and grain yield. Yield component was also affected by increasing of sodium chloride. The influences of phosphate fertilizer on the growth of soybean was not clearly shown at the early growth stage. The pronounced effects of phosphorus on increasing shoot dry weight at the later growth stage and grain yield were observed. The addition of sodium chloride to the soil significantly influenced the nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium content in plant organs. However, the concentration of such primary elements of salt treated plants are still considered sufficient for normal growth. It was also noted that phosphate and chloride concentration in soybean tended to increase with the addition of phosphate fertilizer