Tolerance of black locust and Judas tree seedlings to salinity

Black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia L.) and Judas tree (Cercis siliquastrum L.) are two suitable species for seedling production in nurseries and green space development in arid lands. The current research aimed to study the response of potted-seedlings of these species to salinity based on survival and some growth characteristics. Experiment was performed in a completely randomized design with 4 replicates. In an open place, under a shelter, seedlings were irrigated by NaCl solution for 90 days at four salinity levels including 0, 5, 10 and 20 ds.m-1. The most growth parameters in black locustshowed better response to salinity up to 10 dS.m-1 compared to Judas tree. At 20 dS.m-1 salinity, the survival of black locust seedlings was greater than those of Judas tree (respectively, 45% and 30%). In both species, survival was greater than 50% in 10 dS.m-1, while in 5 dS.m-1 it was not decreased and still was 100%. Considering that the most growth characteristics were decreased in some levels of salinity, threshold of salinity tolerance of both species can be cited 5 ds.m-1. Therefore, these species can be produced in saline soils (up to 5 ds.m-1) of nurseries of arid lands. Similar investigations at next growth stages would reveal the better tolerance of these species to salinity in order to develop the green spaces and rehabilitation of arid lands with saline soils..