Salinity and phosphorus interactions on growth, yield and nutrient uptake by berseem clover (Trifolium alexandrinum L.)

In order to investigate the effect of different levels of salinity and phosphorus on the growth and yield of berseem clover (Trifolium alexandrinum), an experiment using a factorial experiment conducted carried out based on completely randomized block design with four levels of salinity (S1=0, 12, S2=2, S3=6 and S4=10 dS/m) and two levels of phosphorus (P1=10 and P2=30 ppm) with four replicates under green house conditions. Different levels of salinity have been provided from NaCl, MgCl2, Na2SO4 and MgSO4 with weight proportional respectively 2:1:1:1. The treatments of phosphorus provided from KH2PO4 sources. The traits such as growth indexes (leaf area, plant height and shoot diameter) at three different stages, shoot and root dry matters, root to shoot ratio, total length of root, nutrient elements (N, P, K and Na) in shoot and potassium to sodium ratio in shoot were measured. The salinity was applied using saline water with the above-mentioned electrical conductivities. Generally, by increasing salinity and phosphorus levels, all the measured traits were reduced and increased, respectively. Furthermore, at the high level of salinity, increased available phosphorus improves clover yield. So it seems that in saline soils, where there is no possibility for soil leaching and amending, application of phosphorus fertilizers can lead to a good growth and production in clover yield.