Salt tolerance of food crops: Prospectives for improvements

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Abstract
A recent assessment of crop tolerance to salinity employing an extensive literature survey covering 30 years has classified crops into four general tolerance categories based on the electrical conductivity of soil saturation extracts at which yields begin to decline. It is evident that the majority of crop plants for which adequate information exists fall within the sensitive end of the salt tolerance spectrum. This includes such staples as rice, com, and potatoes. Plant salt tolerance is a relative concept and the above categories of necessity tend to obscure varietal and ecotypic differences. This article focuses upon biological variability and its possible exploitation for improving plant salt tolerance both by conventional means and by ‘in vitro’ methods.