Crop Potential of Six Salicornia bigelovii Populations Under Two Salinity Water Treatments Cultivated in a Desert Environment: A Field Study

Abstract

Halophyte farming seems to be a promising alternative to conventional agriculture under marginal environments, since it does not compete with dwindling fresh water and land resources. For this purpose halophytic species need to be domesticated to serve as a “crop” plant. Field evaluation of six Salicornia bigelovii Torr. populations (LA, GA, MI, FL2, SP, FL1) was conducted in 2012–2013 in the United Arab Emirates applying two irrigation treatments: brackish groundwater (20 dSm−1) and seawater (55 dSm−1) to examine their growth performance taking into account 24 plant characteristics, biomass, seed yield parameters, and growth stages attributes. The experimental results indicated that S. bigelovii populations were highly variable for the majority of traits. Irrigation with seawater negatively influenced the agronomic performance of S. bigelovii populations compared to groundwater. SP, MI, and GA populations received higher values for almost all characteristics observed, as compared to LA, FL1, and FL2 populations especially under groundwater treatment. Seawater extended the duration of growth cycle for all Salicornia populations compared to groundwater irrigation. The outcomes clearly indicated that the salinity level had an impact on S. bigelovii populations’ performance and yield potential. It is suggested that screening should be evaluated under both optimum and full-strength saline water to optimize biomass and seed production. The existing genotypes could be further improved through breeding taking into account spike characteristics and days to flowering as revealed by path analysis. Combining suitable germplasm with proper agronomic practices, there is a big potential to develop this halophytic species plantations for economically viable production systems in hot and dry regions.