Abstract

The present work aims to study the germination behavior of seven Tunisian varieties of barley (Kounouz, Faiz, Roho, Manel, Lemsi, Rihane and Tej) during germination without or with NaCl. These varieties have been chosen in order to have the greatest possible diversity on the agro-physiologic level and to select tolerant plants to salinity. Barley grains are germinated (in Petri dishes lined with a double layer of filter paper soaked) in a solution of NaCl 0, 50, 100, 150, 200 mM for 7days. Two germination criteria were studied: the radicle breaching and the coleoptile’s emergence. The measured parameters were the kinetics, the germination rate, the final germination and the GSI (Germination Stress Index). The results showed that, daily germination decreased significantly under NaCl. If we consider the two germination criteria, salt exerts a depressive effect on seed germination capacity of barley and slows germination speed. There is also an important intra-specific variability opposite of salinity. The studied barley varieties were classified in descending order of salt tolerance as following: Roho > Faiz > Kounouz > Manel > Rihane > Lemsi > Tej.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.