title: Effects of salinity, temperature, and polyethylene glycol on the seed germination of sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.).
abstract: Salinization has severe influences on agriculture in the whole world. The main aims of this work were to evaluate osmotic effect and ion effect of NaCl on seed germination of three sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) cultivars interacting with three alternating temperature regimes and to select the most salt tolerant cultivars to plant in the saline region. Seeds were germinated in the isotonic NaCl and polyethylene glycol (PEG) solutions of -0.45, -0.90, -1.34, -1.79, and -2.24 MPa at 10:20, 15:25, and 20:30 °C temperature regimes. Both NaCl and PEG inhibited germination, but the effects of NaCl were less as compared to that of PEG, which means that adverse effects of PEG on germination were due to osmotic effect rather than specific ion accumulation. For the three cultivars, higher germination occurred at 10:20 °C in NaCl treatments and at 20:30 °C in the isotonic PEG treatments. Among the three cultivars, Sandaomei (SDM) is the most tolerant to salt and PEG stress.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Grassland Science, Key Laboratory of Vegetation Ecology, Ministry of Education, Northeast Normal University, Changchun 130024, China ; Biology Department, Tonghua Normal University, Tonghua 134002, China.
authors.forename: Zhihui
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Luan
authors.affiliation: College of Automation, Harbin Engineering University, Harbin 150001, China.
authors.forename: Moxin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Xiao
authors.affiliation: Northeast Institute of Geography and Agroecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Jilin 130102, China.
authors.forename: Daowei
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.affiliation: Northeast Institute of Geography and Agroecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Jilin 130102, China.
authors.forename: Hongxiang
authors.identifier: 0000-0003-0907-843X
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: College of Animal Science and Technology, Jilin Agricultural University, Changchun 130118, China.
authors.forename: Yu
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Tian
authors.affiliation: Educational Institute of Jilin Province, Jilin 130022, China.
authors.forename: Yi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.affiliation: Yantai Institute of Coastal Zone Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Yantai 264003, China.
authors.forename: Bo
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Guan
authors.affiliation: College of Environment and Resources, Dalian Nationalities University, Dalian 116600, China.
authors.forename: Yantao
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Song
mesh_terms: D018525:Germination / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D009997:Osmotic Pressure / Q000187:drug effects; D011092:Polyethylene Glycols / Q000494:pharmacology*; D054712:Salinity; D012492:Salts / Q000737:chemistry; D012639:Seeds / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D013696:Temperature; D014867:Water / Q000737:chemistry
chemical_list: D012492:Salts; D014867:Water; D011092:Polyethylene Glycols