EFFECT OF SALINITY ON THE GROWTH OF Telfaria occidentalis Hook.f

ABSTRACT

Fluted pumpkin (Telfairia occidentale Hook. F.) is a tropical plant belonging to the Cucurbitaceae family and holds significant economic value in Nigeria. Despite its high nutritional benefits and importance, there is a lack of information on how salinity impacts this plant. This study aims to evaluate the effects of salinity on the growth of T. occidentalis. The research was conducted over a four-week period. Seedlings of Telfairia occidentalis were placed in plastic bowls (30 cm in diameter) with drainage holes at the bottom to allow for free water drainage. Two weeks after planting, the seedlings exhibited uniform growth and were moved to the screen house of the Department of Plant Biology and Biotechnology. The plants were irrigated with saline water at varying concentrations: 0 (control), 70, 140, and 280 mM NaCl, with three replicates for each treatment. The results indicated that high salinity negatively affects T. occidentalis. The highest leaf length (19.67±1.53 cm) was observed in the 70 mM NaCl treatment, while the lowest leaf count (4.67±8.08) was recorded in week 4 for plants subjected to the highest salt concentration (280 mM NaCl). Additionally, the study found that salt stress adversely impacted the content of photosynthetic pigments, leading to a decrease in the chlorophyll content index and overall biomass yield. The findings suggest that T. occidentalis can thrive in low to moderate salinity levels (70-140 mM NaCl), but its growth is significantly hindered at high salinity levels.