Yield Evaluation of Some Salicornia Species and Ecotypes Irrigated with Seawater and Groundwater

Lack of fresh water resources has led to production of salt tolerant species. This study was conducted in 2019-2020 to investigate the effect of irrigation water salinity on forage yield, plant height, and shoot ash content of Salicornia bigelovii and native Salicornia ecotypes including Bushehr (S. sinus persica), Central Plateau, Gorgan and Urmia of S. persica under irrigation with Persian Gulf (60 dS m-1) and groundwater (20 dS m-1), in Bushehr and Yazd conditions, respectively. Results showed that there were significant differences between the species and ecotypes in terms of fresh and dry weight of forage in both conditions. The highest fresh and dry weight of forage were related to Bushehr ecotype in both conditions, but the lowest of these traits were in S. bigelovii in Yazd and in Gorgan and Urmia ecotypes in Bushehr conditions. The amount of fresh forage for Bushehr ecotype were about 9333 and 22940 g m-2 in Bushehr and Yazd, respectively. In general, plant height under seawater irrigation conditions varied from 23.0 cm to 35.5 cm in Bushehr condition, and 56.5-78.0 cm in Yazd condition under saline groundwater. Regardless of species and ecotypes, the average shoot ash content in Bushehr and Yazd conditions were, respectively, 53.83% and 47.76%. Based on the results of the study, Bushehr ecotype could be considered as superior for planting and forage production in the southern coastal strip. In Yazd condition, due to better water quality, all species and ecotypes produced high fodder yield. However, due to high water requirement of Salicornia, its production in arid areas, especially in the central regions of the country, is not recommended.