Ecology, Distribution and Ecophysiology of Salicornia Europaea L.

Abstract

Salicornia , belonging to the family Chenopodiaceae , can tolerate total immersion in salt water absorbing the salt dissolved in the water without any harm. It is an ideal, high quality edible-oil yielding plant and its high economic value is attributed to the content of poly-unsaturated oil. In order to solve a number of global problems, this salt-tolerant crops should better be grown on millions of hectares of unproductive, arid land, and in all salty, marshy coastal area of the earth, while conserving freshwater and providing food, fodder, oil and valuable byproducts. For this reasons, knowledge of the ecology and ecophysiology of Salicornia europea can help to evaluate its salt tolerance and potential as crop, but also to give insight into the optimal agronomic conditions for cultivation. In this regard, we evaluated the effects of salinity on S. europaea growth to obtain insight in its performance. Our results showed that S. europaea grows rapidly at moderate salt concentrations (150 and 300 mM NaCl) and can survive at extreme salinities, including seawater concentrations. The results evidenced also that salinity triggered inorganic ions (Na + ) accumu- lation. In conclusion, germination responses to salinity of S. europaea seem likely to infl uence their colonisation capacities down the tidal gradient and hence may be important in the maintenance of taxa zonation in salt marshes. In addition seedling growth data and biochemical analysis sug- gest that this taxa may be successfully used to reclaim highly salinized areas in semi-arid and arid regions of the world.