Effect of salt stress on morphological and yield attributing parameters of pepper (Capsicum annuum) genotypes
132 / 81
Authors
JASPREET KAUR
Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, Punjab 141 004, India
Keywords:
Fruit number, Pepper, Salinity, Stress, YieldAbstract
The present study was carried out during 2022 to 2024 at Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, Punjab to determine the influence of salinity levels of 0, 2, 4 and 6 dS/m on morphological and yield characteristics of 16 highly tolerant pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) genotypes initially selected by testing 100 genotypes at nursery stage. The experiment was conducted using a split plot design (SPD) with salinity treatments as main factor and genotypes as sub factor. Artificial saline conditions in pot were created using NaCl, MgSO4 and CaCl2 in the ratio 2:1:1. The findings revealed that salinity caused a significant decrease in plant height, internode length, branch number, root weight, fruit characteristics, fruit number and yield. Additionally, it also delayed the onset of flowering in all genotypes. When compared to other genotypes, genotypes PAU-212, YL-581 and SL-474 performed superior in all parameters when exposed to salt stress. Maximum yield at highest salinity level was exhibited by PAU-212 (519.8 g/plant) and was followed by YL-581 (511.7 g/plant). In terms of percent decrease in yield at higher salinity levels in comparison to control conditions was minimum in GC-222, with only 16.9% reduction, followed by YL-581 (18.4%) and SL-474 (22.8%). Thus, it can be concluded that PAU-212, YL-581 and SL-474 proved to be the most suitable genotypes for salt tolerance in pot conditions and could be considered for future studies and cultivation in salt affected regions.
Downloads
References
Ai T N, Tran N B T, Nguyen L and Nguyen M H. 2021. Assessment of salinity tolerance of 4 chilli pepper genotypes in Vietnam. Journal of Southwest Jiaotong University 56: 94–100. https:// doi.org/10.35741/issn.0258 2724.56.2.9 DOI: https://doi.org/10.35741/issn.0258-2724.56.2.9
Aizaz M, Jan R, Asaf S, Bilal S, Kim K M and Al Harrasi A. 2024. Regulatory dynamics of plant hormones and transcription factors under salt stress. Biology 13: 673. https:// doi.org/10.3390/biology13090673 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/biology13090673
Aktas H, Abak K and Cakmak I. 2006. Genotypic variation in the response of pepper to salinity. Scientia Horticulturae 110: 260–66. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scienta.2006.07.017 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scienta.2006.07.017
Ashraf M and McNeilly T. 2004. Salinity tolerance in Brassica oilseeds. Critical Reviews in Plant Sciences 23: 157–74. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/07352680490433286
Bandeoglu E, Eyidogan F, Yucel M and Oktem H A. 2004. Antioxidant responses of shoots and roots of lentil to NaCl salinity stress. Plant Growth Regulation 42: 69–77. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/B:GROW.0000014891.35427.7b
Bigot S, Martínez J P, Lutts S and Quinet M. 2025. Impact of salinity on sugar composition and partitioning in relation to flower fertility in Solanum lycopersicum and Solanum chilense. Horticulturae 11: 285. https://doi.org/10.3390/ horticulturae11030285 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/horticulturae11030285
Chartzoulakis K and Klapaki G. 2000. Response of two greenhouse pepper hybrids to NaCl salinity during different growth stages. Scientia Horticulturae 86: 247–60. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/S0304-4238(00)00151-5
Ghassemi F, Jakeman A J and Nix H A. 1995. Salinisation of Land and Resources: Human Causes, Extent, Management and Case Studies. CAB International.
Hasanuzzaman M, Bhuyan M H M B, Zulfiqar F, Raza A, Mohsin S M, Mahmud J A and Fujita M. 2020. Reactive oxygen species and antioxidant defense in plants under abiotic stress: Revisiting the crucial role of a universal defense regulator. Antioxidants 9: 681. https://doi.org/10.3390/antiox9080681 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/antiox9080681
Himaya S M M S and Prapagar K. 2019. Evaluation of salinity stress on growth performance of vegetable cowpea (Vigna unguiculata). EPRA International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research 5: 96–100. DOI: https://doi.org/10.47119/IJRP10036192019712
Huez López M A, Ulery A L, Samani Z, Picchioni G and Flynn R P. 2011. Response of chile pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) to salt stress and organic and inorganic nitrogen sources: I. Growth and yield. Tropical and Subtropical Agroecosystems 14(1): 137–47. http://dx.doi.org/10.56369/tsaes.674 DOI: https://doi.org/10.56369/tsaes.681
Hussain S, Khalid M F, Hussain M, Ali M A, Nawaz A, Zakir I, Fatima Z and Ahmad S. 2018. Role of micronutrients in salt stress tolerance to plants. (In) Plant Nutrients and Abiotic Stress Tolerance, pp. 363–76. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10 .1007/978 981 10 9044 8_15 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-9044-8_15
Ibn Maaouia Houimli S, Denden M and Ben El Hadj S. 2008. Induction of salt tolerance in pepper (Capsicum annuum) by 24 epibrassinolide. EurAsian Journal of Biosciences 2: 83–90.
Kadir Y, Irfan E A and Akinci S. 2004. Effect of salt stress on growth and Na, K contents of pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) in germination and seedling stages. Pakistan Journal of Biological Sciences 7: 606–610. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3923/pjbs.2004.606.610
Kiferle C, Gonzali S, Beltrami S, Martinelli M, Hora K, Holwerda H T and Perata P. 2022. Improvement in fruit yield and tolerance to salinity of tomato plants fertigated with micronutrient amounts of iodine. Scientific Reports 12: 14655. https://doi. org/10.1038/s41598 022 17997 6 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-18301-w
Kumar D, Singh B, Bhardwaj V, Kumar A, Das S K, Singh R K, Zinta G and Tiwari R K. 2022. Salinity responses and tolerance mechanisms in underground vegetable crops: an integrative review. Planta 255: 68. https://doi.org/10.1007/ s00425 022 03845 y
Maas E V and Hoffman G J. 1977. Crop salt tolerance-current assessment. Journal of the Irrigation and Drainage Division, ASCE 103:115–134. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1061/JRCEA4.0001137
Machado R M A and Serralheiro R P. 2017. Soil salinity: Effect on vegetable crop growth management practices to prevent and mitigate soil salinization. Horticulturae 3: 2. https://doi. org/10.3390/horticulturae3010002 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/horticulturae3020030
Munns R and Tester M. 2008. Mechanisms of salinity tolerance. Annual Review of Plant Biology 59: 651–87. https://doi. org/10.1146/annurev.arplant.59.032607.092911 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.arplant.59.032607.092911
Neocleous D and Vasilakakis M. 2007. Effect of NaCl stress on red raspberry (Rubus idaeus L. Autumn Bliss). Scientia Horticulturae 112: 282–89. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scienta.2006.12.025
Niu G, Rodriguez D S, Call E, Bosland P, Ulery A and Acosta E. 2010. Responses of eight chile peppers to saline water irrigation. Scientia Horticulturae 126: 215–22. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scienta.2010.07.016
Nizam I, Ashraf M Y, Athar H R, Arfan M and Iqbal N. 2017. Salinity induced changes in antioxidant capacity and activities of superoxide dismutase and peroxidase in four canola (Brassica napus L.) cultivars. Pakistan Journal of Botany 49: 2291–99.
Parvin K, Ahamed K U, Islam M M and Haque M N. 2015. Response of tomato plant under salt stress: Role of exogenous calcium. Journal of Plant Sciences 10: 222–33. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3923/jps.2015.222.233
PAU. 2024. Package of Practice for Vegetable Crops, pp. 2–6. Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, Punjab.
Rhim T, Ilahy R, Tlili I, Nouri K and Hager J. 2012. The effect of salinity on some growth and yield parameters of three pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) varieties grown in Tunisia. Food 7: 27–31.
Rehman S, Harris P J C and Ashraf M. 2005. Stress environments and their impact on crop production. (In) Abiotic Stresses: Plant Resistance through Breeding and Molecular Approaches, pp. 3–18. Ashraf M and Harris P J C (Eds.). Haworth Press, New York.
Shahid M A, Pervez M A, Bilal R M, Ahmad R, Ayyub C M T and Abbas G. 2011. Salt stress effects on some morphological and physiological characteristics of okra (Abelmoschus esculentus L.). Soil and Environment 30: 66–73.
Sharma P, Joshi N, Kumar P and Joshi A. 2012. Growth, yield and quality of chilli (Capsicum annuum L.) genotypes as influenced by salt stress. Journal of Spices and Aromatic Crops 21: 33–38.
Shrivastava P and Kumar R. 2015. Soil salinity: A serious environmental issue and plant growth promoting bacteria as one of the tools for its alleviation. Saudi Journal of Biological Sciences 22: 123–31. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sjbs.2014.12.001 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sjbs.2014.12.001
Silva A L J, de Farias O R, Corrêa É B, Feitosa de Lacerda C, Soares de Melo A and de Mello Oliveira M D. 2025. Biostimulant modulate the physiological and biochemical activities, improving agronomic characteristics of bell pepper plants under salt stress. Scientific Reports 15: 14969. https:// doi.org/10.1038/s41598 025 14969 w DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-99414-w
Subramanyam K, Kodukula and Kasi I K. 2021. A study on the management of biotic and abiotic threats in chilli crop cultivation. Journal of Horticultural Science 17: 41–48.
Subramanyam K, Sailaja K V, Subramanyam K, Muralidhara Rao D and Lakshmidevi K. 2010. Ectopic expression of an osmotin gene leads to enhanced salt tolerance in transgenic chilli pepper (Capsicum annuum L.). Plant Cell, Tissue and Organ Culture 105: 181–92. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11240-010-9850-1
Yüce M, Aydın M, Turan M, Ilhan E, Ekinci M, Agar G and Yıldırım E. 2025. Ameliorative effects of SL on tolerance to salt stress on pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) plants. Plant Physiology and Biochemistry 223: 109798. https://doi.org/10.1016/j. plaphy.2025.109798 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.plaphy.2025.109798
Zorb C, Geilfus C M and Dietz K J. 2019. Salinity and crop yield. Plant Biology 1: 31–38. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/plb.12884
Downloads
Submitted
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 The Indian Journal of Agricultural Sciences
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
The copyright of the articles published in The Indian Journal of Agricultural Sciences is vested with the Indian Council of Agricultural Research, which reserves the right to enter into any agreement with any organization in India or abroad, for reprography, photocopying, storage and dissemination of information. The Council has no objection to using the material, provided the information is not being utilized for commercial purposes and wherever the information is being used, proper credit is given to ICAR.
How to Cite
