Tolerance of vegetable crops to salinity

Global constraints on fresh water supplies and the need to dispose of agricultural, municipal, and industrial waste waters have intensified interest in water reuse options. In many instances, the value of the water is decreased solely because of its higher salt concentration. Although quantitative information on crop salt tolerance exists for over 130 crop species, there are many vegetables which lack definitive data. Vegetable crops are defined as herbaceous species grown for human consumption in which the edible portions consist of leaves, roots, hypocotyls, stems, petioles, and flower buds. The salt tolerance of vegetable species is important because the cash value of vegetables is usually high compared to field crops. In this review some general information is presented on how salinity affects plant growth and development and how different measurements of salinity in solution cultures, sand cultures, and field studies can be reconciled to a common basis. The salt tolerance of vegetables has been condensed and reported in a uniform format based on the best available data. Discrepancies and inconsistencies exist in some of the information due to differences in cultivars, environments, and experimental conditions. For a great number of species little or no useful information exists and there is an obvious need for research. Published by Elsevier Science B.V.