Determination of the effect of drought and salinity stress on germination and seedlings specifications of sea beet (Beta vulgaris ssp. maritima) in comparison with sugar beet (Beta vulgaris)

Experiments were carried out in a completely randomized design with 3 replication factorial arrangement. Experimental treatments were including genotype factor (including 15 sea beet samples from Khuzestan, Elam, Kermanshah, Kurdistan and Azerbaiyjan provinces and two sensitive and susceptible cultivar of sugar beet) and salinity factors (concentration of 0, 50, 100 and 400 mM) and drought factors (5 levels of 0, 3, 6, 9 and 12 bar). Results showed that the effect of salinity and drought treatments on germination percentage, radicle, plumule length, radicle, and plumule weight traits were significant and in both experiments with increasing stress intensity germination percentage, radicle and plumule length, radicle and plumule weight traits decreased. In both experiments, the germination percentage trait was less and hypocotyl weight trait more affected by stresses than other traits. Alsoو in both experiments, radicle growth was less affected by stress than the plumule. Statistical estimations showed that there was a significant difference between investigated genotypes for germination percentage, radicle length, plumule length, radicle weight and plumule weight in both experiments. In salinity and drought stress conditions, at least 5 and 7 sea beet genotypes were identified from Elam, Kermanshah, Khuzestan and Azerbaiyjan provinces, which were better in terms of germination and early growth characteristics than sugar beet cultivars. Based on this, it can be concluded that sea beet has high diversity and resistance potential against salinity and drought stresses during germination and early growth stages, and can be used to produce more resistance sugar beet against salinity and drought stresses.