Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
APPLIED ECOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH, cilt.18, sa.1, ss.1329-1345, 2020 (SCI-Expanded)
Salinization is one of the most significant environmental problems in the world. Salinity negatively affects the physicochemical properties of the soil and reduces crop production. This study aimed to investigate the potential use of Aptenia cordifolia L. for the phytoremediation of salt-affected soils. Three salt levels; non-saline (NS, EC: 1.38 dS m(-1)), slightly saline (SS, EC: 3.54 dS m(-1)) and highly saline (HS, EC: 9.58 dS m(-1)) soils were collected from Harran Plain-Turkey and used to cultivated A. cordifolia in pots. To assess the salt tolerance of the plants, physiological and biochemical parameters as well as the accumulation of leaf Na+ and Cl- ions were determined. In the meantime, soils were evaluated in terms of electrical conductivity, pH, organic matter and soil enzymes (dehydrogenase, urease, phosphatase and protease) before and after the cultivation. A significant increase in shoot fresh weight and dry weight were obtained from A. cordifolia cultivated-SS soils. No significant differences were determined in terms of crop yield in NS and HS soils. A decrease in total chlorophyll content was evident only in plants growing in HS soils. Proline and malondialdehyde contents and the activity of catalase and peroxidase enzymes were found significantly higher (P <= 0.05) in plants growing in HS as compared to those growing in SS and NS soils. A. cordifolia plants, accumulated more Na+ and Cl- ( )ions in their leaves as the salinity levels increased. Soil pH levels under all soil conditions were not affected although slim increases were observed. However, soil electrical conductivity were decreased 2 and 2.5 times in SS and HS soil types, respectively. Soil organic matter were significantly increased along with the increase in the activity of soil enzymes in all soil types. We suggest that cultivation A. cordifolia in SS and HS soils will improve the condition of soil physicochemical properties in an environmentally-friendly manner.