Growth, Biochemical, Physiological, Yield and Quality Traits Responses of Ten Tomato Varieties to Soil Salinity Stress

Abstract

Salinity stress is one of the extreme major ecological challenges as abiotic stress for crop production sustainability during all stages in most farmlands worldwide especially in arid and semi-arid environments. So, this experiment was comprised ten tomato varieties (1F1, 4 F1, 33 F1, 35 F1, 023 F1, o44 F1, 085 F1, G15, Novi and Nancy) to choice the salinity tolerance variety under saline-affected soil (EC 8.1 dS m-1). All the used varieties have differential responses to salinity stress. Therefore, all varieties, the high salinity stress shown a great reduction in most morphological and physiological traits; however, an intermediate decrease was obtained in some varieties in most studied traits. In this experiment, morphological, physiological and biochemical attributes are varied under saline affected soil for the ten varieties. Nevertheless, this work the varieties of (023 F1, o44 F1, G15, Novi and Nancy) were the most tolerant to soil salinity stress, compared to other ten varieties, especially 1F1 and 4F1 were more susceptible to soil salinity stress. The 023 F1, Nancy, Nova, 35 and G15 varieties, produced the highest values of plant height and leaf area (dm2/ plant) and flowering attributes. Also, 023 F1 hybrid had the highest value in proline content and POD enzyme activity in comparing to other tomato varieties in most cases. Moreover, both of 023 F1 and 044 F1 hybrids had the highest total fruit yield and more acceptable for fruit quality parameters. Therefore, more research to find solutions to select the tolerant tomato varieties to salinity stress is needed and producing the new resistant tomato hybrids against salinity conditions by breeders