GENETIKA, vol.54, no.1, pp.255-264, 2022 (SCI-Expanded)
To determine the effects of irrigation water salinity on seed germination and seedling
development of two rice cultivars, irrigation waters with low SAR (below 3) were
prepared in different salinity levels (control [0.5], 2, 4, 8, 12, 16, and 20 dS m-1
) from
different salinity sources (NaCl, MgS04, and CaCl2 salts). The average germination rate
was decreased for the cv. Baldo 20.19%, while for cv. Osmancık - 97 it was 26.73%. The
average of the single seedling dry weight of cv. Baldo was 0.2666 g, while for cv.
Osmancık-97 it was 0.2569 g. The average single seedling dry weight was 0.2940 g in the
control application. In parallel to the increased irrigation water salinity level, the single
seedling dry weight decreased. The irrigation water salinity had not affected up to 4 dS m1
in terms of the germination rate decrease and the single seedling dry weight of rice, but
it started to be affected when increased salinity level to 8 dS m-1
and it was more effective
at higher doses. Also, cv. Osmancık-97 was more sensitive to irrigation water salinity
than cv. Baldo. In conclusion, it turns out that the irrigation water to be used in rice
farming should not have salinity since the tolerance of the rice plant against irrigation
water salinity is low.