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ARS Home » Southeast Area » Canal Point, Florida » Sugarcane Field Station » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #390849
Research Project: Development of High-Yielding, Stress Tolerant Sugarcane Cultivars Using Agronomic, Genetic, and Molecular Approaches

Location: Sugarcane Field Station

Title: Responses of sugarcane genotypes to salinity stress during growth and flowering

Author
item Momotaz, Aliya
item Zhao, Duli

Submitted to: American Society of Sugar Cane Technologists
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 6/14/2022
Publication Date: 8/26/2022
Citation: Momotaz, A., Zhao, D. 2022. Responses of sugarcane genotypes to salinity stress during growth and flowering. American Society of Sugar Cane Technologists. 42:51-60. 2022

Interpretive Summary: Flowering behavior and flower quality are important in sugarcane breeding programs. Flowering in sugarcane is a complex trait in nature, which relies on both sugarcane’s innate system as well as its environment. According to irrigation water test results, salinity in irrigation water is going to be a problem at the sugarcane breeding program in Canal Point, Florida. Knowledge of physiological mechanism of salinity stress are limited in sugarcane. Therefore, under these circumstances, the present study was conducted to find out influences of salinity on flowering and on their vegetative growth. Our experimental results show salt-stress conditions significantly reduced the plant height of all genotypes. All four genotypes showed significant effect on flowering with the two treatments (150 and 300 mM). The results also revealed that salt stress delayed flowering initiation of 17 days in HoCP 14-855 at 150 mM; 55 days in CP 96-1252 and CP 06-2400 and CP 00-1101 did not flower under any salt stress conditions. The number of inflorescences decreased significantly in both CP 96-1252 (6.8 to 2.7) and HoCP 14-855 (6.5 to 0.5). These findings improve our knowledge of the salinity impact on sugarcane growth and flowering.

Technical Abstract: Sugarcane (Saccharum sp.) flowering is complex in nature; both of its innate genetic mechanism and environment play important roles on it. This study was carried out to investigate effects of soil salinity on sugarcane plant growth and flowering. Three flowering (CP 96-1252, CP 06-2400 and HoCP 14-885) and one non-flowering (CP 00-1101) sugarcane genotypes were evaluated in three different salt concentrations in a pot study at the USDA-ARS Sugarcane Field Station, Canal Point, Florida, USA. The experiment was a split plot design with three replications and three levels of salt treatments: no salt control (TN) and two salt concentrations (T1=150mM and T2=300mM). T1 and T2 were maintained by adding NaCl during the early growth stage (50 to 63 days after planting (DAP)). Measurements of plant height (HT), tiller number (TN), days to flower initiation and number inflorescence were taken in the control and salt-stressed plants during the course of experiment. Salt-stress conditions significantly reduced the HT of all genotypes, however, no differences were observed on TN. All four genotypes showed significant effect on flowering with salt treatments. None of them flowered with T2. CP 96-1252, CP 06-2400, CP 00-1101 and HoCP 14-885 flowered at 208, 263, 303 and 260 DAP in the control. The results revealed that salt stress (T1) delayed flowering initiation of 17 days in HoCP 14-855; 55 days in CP 96-1252 and CP 06-2400; CP 00-1101 did not flower under any salt stress condition. The number of inflorescences decreased significantly in both CP 96-1252 (6.8 to 2.7) and HoCP 14-855 (6.5 to 0.5). These findings improve our knowledge of the salinity impact on sugarcane growth and flowering.