Effect of Salinity During Seedling Stage on the Growth and Yield of Black Rice (Oryza sativa L. 'Jeliteng')

Abstract

Abstract Black rice (Oryza sativa L. 'Jeliteng') as a functional food, has a higher nutritional content than other types of rice. Black rice can be cultivated along coastal agricultural area which is vulnerable to salinity problem. This study was aimed to determine the effect of salinity during seedling on the growth and yield of black rice. The experiment was conducted at the screen house of the Faculty of Agriculture, Universitas Gadjah Mada. The experiment was arranged in Randomized Complete Block Design. The treatments consisted of non-saline and saline nursery (3 dS/m) as the first factor, and the level of salinity of the media after transplanting (0, 2, 4 and 6 ds/m) as the second factor. The results showed that increasing soil salinity concentrations increased the levels of Na+ and K+ in leaves, decreased stomatal opening width, plant height and 100 grains weight. Compared to those in non-saline nursery, salinity in the seedling stage increased the transpiration rate, stem fresh weight, proportion of green leaves and harvest index under salt stress in the later growth stage. However, seedlings from saline and non-saline nursery showed no difference in their productivities.