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Physiological and morphological characterisation of Limonium species in their natural habitats: Insights into their abiotic stress responses

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Abstract

Background and aims

Morphological and biochemical traits of four halophytes of the genus Limonium were analysed in plants sampled from salt marshes in SE Spain. This work aimed to explore the mechanism(s) behind the adaptation of these species to stressful habitats, with particular emphasis on responses to drought.

Methods

Plants of each species together with soil samples were collected in summer, which is the most stressful season in the Mediterranean. Soil parameters and plant morphological traits were determined, and the levels of several biochemical stress markers in plants were measured using spectrophotometric assays. A multivariate analysis was performed to correlate soil and plant data.

Results

Morphological characteristics regarding the underground system topology and several biochemical traits (higher foliar Ca2+, sucrose and glucose, and lower proline, glycine-betaine and fructose) clearly separate L. santapolense individuals from plants of the other three species.

Conclusions

Drought tolerance of L. santapolense in the field is mostly dependent on morphological adaptations: when growing in an arid location, plants of this species develop long taproots that can extract water from the deep, moist layers of the soil.

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Abbreviations

ETo:

potential evapotranspiration

S:

sand

Sl:

silt

C:

clay

OM:

organic matter

ECsat:

electric conductivity in the saturation extract

NS:

number of apical shoots

NL:

number of leaves

SFW:

Shoot fresh weigh

RFW:

Root fresh weight

LA:

total leaf area

RL:

total root length

LRL:

lateral root length

PRL:

taproot or principal root length

RSA:

root surface area

D:

average diameter of the roots

R/S:

root to shoot ratio

SRL:

specific root length

M:

root magnitude

a:

root altitude

Nd:

numbers of root nodes

TI:

topological index

Pro:

proline

GB:

glycine betaine

TSS:

total soluble sugars

Fru:

fructose

Suc:

sucrose

Glu:

glucose

MDA:

malondialdehyde

DPPH:

2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl

TPC:

total phenolic compounds

TF:

total flavonoids

PCA:

Principal component analysis

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Acknowledgements

This research was partly supported by the project AICO/2017/039 from Generalitat Valenciana. We are indebted to Dr. Inmaculada Bautista (Universitat Politècnica de Valencia, Spain) for her useful suggestions for improving the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Mediterranean Agroforestry Institute (IAM, UPV), Universitat Politècnica de València, Camino de Vera 14, 46022, Valencia, Spain

    Sara González-Orenga, Josep V. Llinares & Monica Boscaiu

  2. Institute for Plant Molecular and Cell Biology (UPV-CSIC), Universitat Politècnica de València, Camino de Vera 14, 46022, Valencia, Spain

    Mohamad Al Hassan & Purificación Lisón

  3. Wageningen UR Plant Breeding, Wageningen University and Research Centre, Wageningen, Netherlands

    Mohamad Al Hassan

  4. Institute for the Preservation and Improvement of Valencian Agrodiversity (COMAV, UPV), Universitat Politècnica de València, Camino de Vera 14, 46022, Valencia, Spain

    Ana Fita & Oscar Vicente

  5. Servici Devesa-Albufera, Vivers Municipals de El Saler, CV-500, km 8.5, 46012, Valencia, Spain

    Francisco Collado

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  1. Sara González-Orenga
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  2. Josep V. Llinares
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Correspondence to Oscar Vicente.

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González-Orenga, S., Llinares, J.V., Al Hassan, M. et al. Physiological and morphological characterisation of Limonium species in their natural habitats: Insights into their abiotic stress responses. Plant Soil 449, 267–284 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-020-04486-4

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