A classification of pasture and fodder plants according to their ability to translocate sodium from their roots into aerial parts

The ability of the more important pasture and fodder plants grown in New Zealand to translocate sodium from their root systems into their leaf tissue was examined in a glasshouse pot experiment. Plants were classified into two distinct types: natrophilic plants, which have the capacity to accumulate large amounts of sodium in their shoots where adequate quantities of sodium are present in the growth medium, but have low concentrations in their roots; and natrophobic plants for which the converse is generally true. A further subdivision was made within both types, depending on the concentration of sodium in the lower stem or stubble tissue. The importance of this classification is discussed in relation to a nutritional problem which arises where natrophobic plants form a substantial part of the diet of grazing animals.