Alleviation Of Nacl Stress In Summer Squash ‘Eskandrani’ By Foliar Application Of Salicylic Acid

The experiment was performed to assess the possibility of overcoming NaCl salinity stress by foliar sprays of summer squash ‘Eskandrani’ with salicylic acid (SA) at the concentration of 10^-6 M. NaCl treatment caused reduction of shoot fresh weight, leaf number per plant, fruit yield, concentrations of potassium in aerial parts, and the concentration of chlorophyll in leaves. Plants grown under salt stress conditions had higher shoot sodium concentrations than plants untreated with NaCl. Foliar application of SA ameliorated partly the negative effect of NaCl treatment. The beneficial effect of SA was also observed in non-stressed plants, increasing the shoot potassium accumulation and leaf photosynthetic pigments status, and decreasing sodium accumulation in shoots.