Salt stress effect on some ecotypes of motherwort (Leonurus cardiaca L.)

Due to decreasing of suitable land for agriculture and increasing of the saline lands and also the importance of Leonurus Cardiaca, Identification of tolerant medicinal plants to salinity is most important. The experiment was run as factorial experiment based on randomized complete block design with three replications. Four salinity levels were applied by irrigation with solutions containing NaCl that made EC of 0 (control), 4, 8 and 12 ds/m treated on four ecotypes of Taleghan, Khansar, Sarab and Kerman to measure dry weight of shoot and root, shoot length, leaf area, root length, chlorophyll, carotenoids, prolin, total phenol and elements. Results showed that effect of population and their salinity and interactioneffects were significant in most of the measured attributes. Dry weight of shoot and leaf area decreased with increasing salinity level. Kerman ecotype had the highest amount of root dry weight than other ecotypes in all treatments, and had a highest amount of shoot dry weight (33.43 g) as well. Amount of sodium increased with increasing salinity levels, while the amount of potassium, and Calcium decreased. In all treatments, Taleghan and Kerman ecotypes had the highest amount of potassium in shoot. The highest level of shoot calcium (7.75 mg/g-1 dw) was in Kerman ecotype. Kerman ecotype was superior in most of traits.