title: Effects of salt stress and rhizobial inoculation on growth and nitrogen fixation of three peanut cultivars.
abstract: Increasing soil salinity represents a major constraint for agriculture in arid and semi-arid lands, where mineral nitrogen (N) deficiency is also a frequent characteristic of soils. Biological N fixation by legumes may constitute a sustainable alternative to chemical fertilisation in salinity-affected areas, provided that adapted cultivars and inoculants are available. Here, the performance of three peanut cultivars nodulated with two different rhizobial strains that differ in their salt tolerance was evaluated under moderately saline water irrigation and compared with that of N-fertilised plants. Shoot weight was used as an indicator of yield. Under non-saline conditions, higher yields were obtained using N fertilisation rather than inoculation for all the varieties tested. However, under salt stress, the yield of inoculated plants became comparable to that of N-fertilised plants, with minor differences depending on the peanut cultivar and rhizobial strain. Our results indicate that N fixation might represent an economical, competitive and environmentally friendly choice with respect to mineral N fertilisation for peanut cultivation under moderate saline conditions.
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Ciencias Agrarias, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: M R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: El-Akhal
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Rincón
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Coba de la Peña
authors.forename: M M
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Lucas
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: El Mourabit
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Barrijal
authors.forename: J J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Pueyo
mesh_terms: D057914:Agricultural Irrigation / Q000379:methods; D010367:Arachis / Q000737:chemistry / Q000187:drug effects / Q000382:microbiology*; D004789:Enzyme Activation; D009586:Nitrogen Fixation; D009591:Nitrogenase / Q000032:analysis; D055170:Plant Root Nodulation; D018520:Plant Shoots / Q000187:drug effects / Q000201:enzymology / Q000254:growth & development; D012231:Rhizobium / Q000254:growth & development*; D053204:Root Nodules, Plant / Q000737:chemistry / Q000201:enzymology / Q000382:microbiology; D054712:Salinity; D055051:Salt-Tolerant Plants / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism / Q000382:microbiology; D012965:Sodium Chloride / Q000494:pharmacology; D012987:Soil / Q000737:chemistry; D013312:Stress, Physiological; D014867:Water / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D012987:Soil; D014867:Water; D012965:Sodium Chloride; D009591:Nitrogenase