Soil salinity is correlated with a decline in 13C discrimination in leaves of Atriplex species

Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
A dune‐swale‐dune transect in north‐eastern South Australia with a regular covering of saltbush (Atriplex vesicaria and Atriplex stipitata) was studied. The transect topography was surveyed, as were the Δ (discrimination against 13C in CO2) of the saltbush plants, and the electrical conductivity and chloride profiles of the soil. Increasing soil salinity, surveyed as electromagnetic (EM) soil conductivity, correlated with a decrease in A composition in the leaves of the C4 Atriplex species. No such correlation occurred with the whole plant. Further, the Δ of foliage was more variable than the Δ of whole plants. The Δ of foliage was higher than that of corresponding stems. We suggest that soil conductivity measured in this way is a meaningful assessment of plant growth conditions, and that further study will demonstrate its scope for incorporation into field studies of native plants at a quantitative level.