PHYSICOCHEMICAL RESPONSE OF ALFALFA (MEDICAGO SATIVA L.) AND RYE GRASS (LOLIUM PERENNE L.) GENOTYPES TO INDUCE DROUGHT STRESS AT SEEDLING STAGE

Alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) is an important forage crop that is often grown in areas that frequently experience drought and water shortage. It is predicted that climate changes may increase the risk of local droughts, with severe consequences for agricultural practices. Here, we are illuminating the physicochemical mechanisms governing alfalfa and ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) stress responses, contribute to the improvement of drought tolerance in leguminous crops. This study evaluated the performance of different alfalfa and rye grass genotypes against polyethylene glycol (PEG) induced drought stress. Among different, traits germination percentage, survival percentage, root and shoot length, fresh and dry root weights, fresh and dry shoot weights, total fresh weight of seedling, vigor index and proline content were found highly significant. On the basis of mean performance, the genotypes named Haymaker, Accelerate and Icon showed highly significant values under different treatments. Traits such as germination percentage and survival percentage showed significant results for genetic advanced and heritability. Mean values of biochemical studies indicated that genotype Accelerate" showed high mean values for antioxidant activity and total flavonoid content, while "Icon" showed significant results in phenolic content. Accelerate, Icon and Haymaker have reasonable variability and important mechanisms for conferring drought tolerance in alfalfa and ryegrass.