Abstract
Abstract The need for salinity tolerant turfgrasses is increasing because of the growing use of effluent or other low‐quality waters for turfgrass irrigation. Salinity can affect soils and plants in all climates but is particularly common in arid environments and has numerous causes. Salinity impacts the growth of most plants, albeit with variations among species. The objective of this experiment was to quantify the effects of salinity on root growth of an experimental line of saltgrass ( Distichlis spicata L. Greene) (SG) and NuGlade Kentucky bluegrass ( Poa pratensis L.) (KBG), two grasses with contrasting salinity tolerance. In this experiment, SG and KBG were grown in containers within separate growth chambers, each maintained at their optimal growing temperatures. Salinity was imposed on the plants by irrigating with saline waters of ∼0, 8, and 16 dS/m for SG and ∼0, 4, and 8 dS/m for KBG. Root growth was monitored using minirhizotron and in‐growth root cores. The data from in‐growth root cores revealed contrasting effects of salinity on root and rhizome growth trends between SG and KBG. Root growth of SG increased by 22% under 8 and 16 dS/m salinity treatments. Conversely, salinity treatment of 8 dS/m decreased KBG root growth by 33% compared to the control. Saltgrass rhizome growth increased by 130% with the rise in salinity from the control to 16 dS/m treatment, whereas KBG rhizome growth decreased by 57% as salinity increased from the control to 8 dS/m. Minirhizotron observation indicated that SG showed increased flushes of fine roots in the moderate levels of salinity (8 dS/m) compared to the control about 3 weeks after salt treatments began. Increased fine root production greatly increased the root surface area for absorption, an adaptive response of SG to salinity. Turf quality did not deteriorate by even the highest level of salinity tested in saltgrass, suggesting it is a good candidate for turf growing under saline conditions.
Abstract from the paper’s OpenAlex record, shown for indexing and research. Copyright remains with the authors or the publisher. Read at the source ↗
The text the model read, with the source record’s inline markup (italics, sub- and superscripts) rendered and its character entities decoded; quote offsets refer to the raw text.
Claims 8
Claim · model-written summary
Saltgrass root growth rose 22% under 8 and 16 dS/m salinity.
- Taxon
- saltgrass
.jpg?width=60)
Distichlis spicatae0 - Treatment
- 8 and 16 dS/m salinity treatmentse1
- Outcome
- Root growth of SGe1
- Direction
- increasede1
- Value
- 22%e1
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
.jpg?width=500)
Verbatim
e0“saltgrass ( Distichlis spicata L. Greene)”
e1“Root growth of SG increased by 22% under 8 and 16 dS/m salinity treatments”
Claim · model-written summary
Kentucky bluegrass root growth fell 33% under 8 dS/m salinity versus control.
- Taxon
- Kentucky bluegrass
.jpg?width=60)
Poa pratensise0 - Treatment
- salinity treatment of 8 dS/me1
- Outcome
- KBG root growthe1
- Direction
- decreasede1
- Value
- 33%e1
- Comparator
- the controle1
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
.jpg?width=500)
Verbatim
e0“Kentucky bluegrass ( Poa pratensis L.)”
e1“salinity treatment of 8 dS/m decreased KBG root growth by 33% compared to the control”
Claim · model-written summary
Saltgrass rhizome growth rose 130% from control to 16 dS/m.
- Taxon
- saltgrassDistichlis spicatae0
- Treatment
- 16 dS/m treatmente1
- Outcome
- Saltgrass rhizome growthe1
- Direction
- increasede1
- Value
- 130%e1
- Comparator
- the controle1
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“saltgrass ( Distichlis spicata L. Greene)”
e1“Saltgrass rhizome growth increased by 130% with the rise in salinity from the control to 16 dS/m treatment”
Claim · model-written summary
Kentucky bluegrass rhizome growth fell 57% from control to 8 dS/m.
- Taxon
- Kentucky bluegrassPoa pratensise0
- Treatment
- 8 dS/me1
- Outcome
- KBG rhizome growthe1
- Direction
- decreasede1
- Value
- 57%e1
- Comparator
- the controle1
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Kentucky bluegrass ( Poa pratensis L.)”
e1“KBG rhizome growth decreased by 57% as salinity increased from the control to 8 dS/m”
Claim · model-written summary
Saltgrass produced more fine-root flushes at 8 dS/m than control about three weeks after treatment began.
- Taxon
- saltgrassDistichlis spicatae0
- Treatment
- 8 dS/me1
- Outcome
- flushes of fine rootse1
- Direction
- increasede1
- Qualifier
- about 3 weeks after salt treatments begane1
- Comparator
- the controle1
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“saltgrass ( Distichlis spicata L. Greene)”
e1“SG showed increased flushes of fine roots in the moderate levels of salinity (8 dS/m) compared to the control about 3 weeks after salt treatments began”
Claim · model-written summary
Increased fine-root production greatly raised saltgrass root surface area for absorption.
- Taxon
- saltgrassDistichlis spicatae0
- Outcome
- root surface area for absorptione1
- Direction
- increasede1
- Qualifier
- Increased fine root productione1
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“saltgrass ( Distichlis spicata L. Greene)”
e1“Increased fine root production greatly increased the root surface area for absorption, an adaptive response of SG to salinity”
Claim · model-written summary
Saltgrass turf quality did not deteriorate even at the highest salinity tested.
- Taxon
- saltgrassDistichlis spicatae0
- Treatment
- highest level of salinity testede1
- Outcome
- Turf qualitye1
- Direction
- did not deterioratee1
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“saltgrass ( Distichlis spicata L. Greene)”
e1“Turf quality did not deteriorate by even the highest level of salinity tested in saltgrass”
Claim · model-written summary
The authors identify saltgrass as a good candidate for turf under saline conditions.
- Taxon
- saltgrassDistichlis spicatae0
- Outcome
- good candidate for turf growing under saline conditionse0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“saltgrass, suggesting it is a good candidate for turf growing under saline conditions”
The same questions in other papers
salinity · growth · Distichlis spicata (saltgrass)Positive and negative results
3 papers in the same direction as this paper · 5 in the opposite direction
- no effect
- negative
- negative
5 papers more in this group
See all 9 papers →salinity · growth · Poa pratensis (Kentucky bluegrass)Positive and negative results
7 papers in the same direction as this paper · 2 in the opposite direction
- positive
- positive
- negative
6 papers more in this group
See all 10 papers →Claims are grouped by organism, treatment and what was measured or targeted. A paper counts as positive when any of its claims in the group is positive.