Effects of foliar application of salicylic acid on vegetative growth of maize under saline conditions

The study was carried out to evaluate the effects of the foliar application of salicylic acid (SA) on vegetative growth of maize (single-cross 704) under saline conditions at Agricultural College of Valiasr University, Rafsanjan, Iran in 2009. A factorial experiment based on a completely randomized design with three replicates was used. Spraying treatments consisted of four salinity levels (0, 4, 8, 12 dS.m-1) and three salicylic acid concentrations (0, 100, 200 ppm). Traits such as shoot dry weight, stem length, number of leaves, leaf area and chlorophyll were measured. Results of analysis of variance showed that salinity levels and SA concentrations affected shoot dry weight, stem length, number of leaves, leaf area and chlorophyll content significantly (P<0.01). By increasing sa-linity up to 12 dS.m-1, the above-mentioned traits decreased by 79.96%, 61.2%, 25.6%, 73.31% and 20.42%, respectively. Means comparison indicated that plant vegetative growth traits were improved by increasing SA concentration up to 200 ppm. As a result, these traits increased by 84.64%, 44.65%, 28.20%, 74.94%, and 38.66%, respectively. Salinity and SA interaction had no significant effect on shoot dry weight, stem length, number of leaves, leaf area and chlorophyll of plants.