Abstract
Atriplex halimus L. is known in the Mediterranean basin and along the coastal areas of Sardinia for its adaptability to salinity, although less information is available on the resistance of this species to water stress in absence of salinity. The effect of water stress on growth and water utilisation was investigated in two Atriplex species: A. halimus originating of south Sardinian island and the exotic species Atriplex nummularia Lindl., originating in Australia and widely used in land restoration of arid areas. Water stress was applied to young plants growing in 20L pots with a sufficient water reserve to store a potentially sufficient water reserve to maintain substrate near to field capacity (30%) between irrigations. Watering was at 70% (control) or 40% (stress) of field capacity. In order to simulate the grazing by livestock, four plant biomass cuttings were conducted at times T0, T1, T2 and T3, corresponding to one cutting at the end of well watered phase (T0) before water stress induction, two cuttings after cycles of 5 weeks each during full summer (T1) and late summer (T2) and one cutting during autumn (T3). All plants remained alive until the end of treatment although growth was strongly reduced. Leaf dry weight (DW) and water use efficiency (WUE) were determined for all cuttings; relative water content (RWC), turgid weight:dry weight ratio (TW:DW), water potential (Ψw), osmotic potential (Ψs), CO2 assimilation, osmotic adjustment (OA), abscisic acid (ABA) and sugar accumulation were determined for the late summer cutting at T2. Water stress induced a decrease in DW, RWC, Ψw, Ψs, TW:DW and CO2 assimilation for both species, but an increase in WUE expressed in terms of dry matter production and a high accumulation of ABA and total sugars mainly for A. halimus. This suggests a more developed adaptive mechanism in this selection. Indeed, the clone was selected from the southern part of the island, where natural populations of saltbush are more exposed to abiotic stresses, mainly the water stress generated not by salinity. A. nummularia showed a greater OA and a positive net solute accumulation as than A. halimus, suggesting that water stress resistance in A. halimus is linked to a higher WUE rather than a greater osmotic adjustment.
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Claims 8
Claim · model-written summary
All Atriplex plants survived water stress, though growth was reduced.
AtriplexOrganisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“All plants remained alive until the end of treatment although growth was strongly reduced.”
t0“Atriplex spp.”
Claim · model-written summary
Water stress reduced dry weight, relative water content and turgid to dry weight ratio in both species.
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Water stress induced a decrease in DW, RWC, Ψw, Ψs, TW:DW and CO2 assimilation for both species”
e1“Watering was at 70% (control) or 40% (stress) of field capacity.”
t0“Atriplex spp.”
Claim · model-written summary
Water stress reduced water potential, osmotic potential and CO2 assimilation in both species.
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Water stress induced a decrease in DW, RWC, Ψw, Ψs, TW:DW and CO2 assimilation for both species”
e1“Watering was at 70% (control) or 40% (stress) of field capacity.”
t0“Atriplex spp.”
Claim · model-written summary
Water stress increased water use efficiency based on dry matter production.
- Treatment
- Water stresse1
- Outcome
- WUE expressed in terms of dry matter productione0
- Direction
- increasee0
- Comparator
- 70% (control)e2
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“an increase in WUE expressed in terms of dry matter production”
e1“Water stress induced a decrease in DW”
e2“Watering was at 70% (control) or 40% (stress) of field capacity.”
t0“Atriplex spp.”
Claim · model-written summary
Water stress increased abscisic acid and total sugar accumulation, mainly in A. halimus.
- Taxon
- A. halimus
Atriplex halimuse0 - Treatment
- Water stresse1
- Outcome
- accumulation of ABA and total sugarse0
- Direction
- highe0
- Comparator
- 70% (control)e2
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“a high accumulation of ABA and total sugars mainly for A. halimus”
e1“Water stress induced a decrease in DW”
e2“Watering was at 70% (control) or 40% (stress) of field capacity.”
Claim · model-written summary
A. nummularia had greater osmotic adjustment than A. halimus.
- Taxon
- A. nummularia
Atriplex nummulariae0 - Outcome
- OAe0
- Direction
- greatere0
- Comparator
- A. halimuse0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“A. nummularia showed a greater OA and a positive net solute accumulation as than A. halimus”
Claim · model-written summary
A. nummularia showed positive net solute accumulation relative to A. halimus.
- Taxon
- A. nummulariaAtriplex nummulariae0
- Outcome
- net solute accumulatione0
- Direction
- positivee0
- Comparator
- A. halimuse0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“A. nummularia showed a greater OA and a positive net solute accumulation as than A. halimus”
Claim · model-written summary
The authors linked A. halimus water stress resistance more to water use efficiency than osmotic adjustment.
- Taxon
- A. halimusAtriplex halimuse0
- Outcome
- water stress resistancee0
- Qualifier
- higher WUE rather than a greater osmotic adjustmente0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“water stress resistance in A. halimus is linked to a higher WUE rather than a greater osmotic adjustment”
The same questions in other papers
drought · physiology: water · AtriplexPositive and negative results
1 in the opposite direction
- negative
drought · growth · AtriplexResults agree
1 paper in the same direction as this paper
- no effect
Claims are grouped by organism, treatment and what was measured or targeted. A paper counts as positive when any of its claims in the group is positive.