Effect of salinity on the germination of three varieties of Phaseolus vulgaris L. (Fabales Fabaceae)

The present study is carried out to compare tolerance levels towards salinity of three varieties of the plant Phaseolus vulgaris L. (Fabales Fabaceae): Cocorose, Eldjadida and Tadalaghte (a Saharan variety harvested from the area of Béchar in the south of Algeria) during germination.The tolerance levels are estimated by percentage of germinated seeds as well as of the length of roots (in cm), during a period of eight days.Preliminary results show that the germination is maximal in the distilled water and decreases with the increase of the salt concentration of the environment.It is non-existant at 300 meq of NaCl in all the varieties.The increase of the salt concentration delays the germination and reduces percentage of germinated seeds.The response of the seeds of P. vulgaris towards the saline stress varies depending on time and salt concentration.The effect of NaCl on germination varies also depending on the variety.It was found that the variety Tadalaghte shows a good tolerance towards salinity better than Eldjadida and Cocorose.The latter is the most sensitive variety.