Growth and chemical composition of pistachio as affected by salinity and applied iron

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Abstract
Summary The combined effects of five soil salinity levels (0, 1 200, 2 400, 3 600, and 4 800 µg g−1) on the growth and chemical composition of pistachio cv Fandoghi were studied in a glasshouse experiment. The relative top dry weights were correlated with the chloride ion, sodium adsorption ratio (SAR), electrical conductivity of the saturation extract (Ece) and the estimated exchangeable sodium percentage (ESP) of soils. Top dry weights were reduced by 31% and 51% at 3 600 and 4 800 µg g−1 levels of soil salinity, respectively. The effect of Fe supply on the top dry weight was not statistically significant. The concentration of chloride in tops was well correlated with its concentration in the substrate and was considerably higher than that of Na. At each level of Fe application, increasing NaCl levels resulted in increased concentrations of Na; the trend being more pronounced at the highest Fe treatment level. The Fe treatments produced a significant increase of this element in the tops. Pistachio seedlings were found to be tolerant to NaCl and the chloride ion but semi-tolerant to Na.