Effects of salinity on morpho-physiological, and biochemical characteristics of stock plant (Matthiola incana L.)

Salinity is one of the most important environmental stresses which generally results in severe damage to plants and plant biodiversity. Growth limitation is of undesirable effects of salinity on plants and trees. Investigating the effects of salinity on characteristics of plants in arid and semi-arid areas can be useful in effective selection of resistant ornamental plants in these areas. This study was carried out to investigate the effects of several levels of salinity (1-5 dS m(-1)) on two cultivars of stock flower (Matthiola incana L.), i.e., PanAmerican and Cinderella. The results of this study showed that almost all morphological, physiological, and biochemical characteristics including catalase enzyme activity, anthocyanin content, phenolic compounds, and proline content of both studied plant cultivars were significantly affected (P < 0.01) by severe salinity stress levels (5 dS m(-1)). According to the results, to achieve high quality stock plants, they should be irrigated with waters with salinities up to 4 dS m(-1) during growing period. Therefore, the irrigation should be carefully controlled to avoid stresses due to high levels of salinity.