Salinity effect on seed germination and plant growth of brinjal (SolanummelongenaL.)

Salinity is one of the most brutal environmental stresses that delays seed germination, limiting plant growth and has an adverse effect on many important physiological processes of plants.This experiment was conducted to determine the effect of different salinity levels on the growth and chemical constituents of the brinjal (variety: Ventura) plant (Solanum melongena L.) during the period of February to August 2022 using the Completely Randomized Design (CRD) with three replications.Experimental results showed that percent germination, seedling and growth of brinjal plants were suppressed with increasing salt concentration under laboratory conditions at 0, 3, 6, 9 and 12 dSm -1 salinity levels.The best germination percentage (100%) was at the salinity level (0 dSm -1 ) and the lowest germination percentage (86.67%)was recorded at the highest salinity level (12 dSm -1 ).Plant height, root and shoot length, fresh and dry weight of brinjal plants were decreased with increasing salt concentrations.Chlorophyll, proline, protein and carotene contents of plants were largely affected by different salinity levels.Significant changes in the concentrations of mineral elements in brinjal plants were also observed with increasing salinity.The concentration of Na + in brinjal plants significantly increased with increasing the salinity levels.The highest Na + content (135 mg/100g) was recorded at 12 dSm -1 and the lowest (98.04 mg/100g) was at 0 dSm -1 .On Salinity effect…