Salicylic Acid and Trichoderma Ameliorate Salt Stress Responses in Pea (Pisum sativum L.)

Salinity Stress is one of the most important environmental stresses that cause adverse effects on crop productivity and agricultural sustainability. The present experiment was carried out as a pot-culture in the poly-house and identified various physiological and biochemical attributes which progressively reduced with increase in salinity level due to formation of reactive oxygen species i.e. hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) and superoxide radical (O₂^.-). Treatment of seeds with Trichoderma asperellum (T42) and exogenous application of salicylic acid (SA), singly and in combination, ameliorated salt stress induced responses reflected by detoxification of both reactive oxygen species, H₂O₂ and O₂^.- histochemically, and also changes in several growth phenotypes and physio-biochemical attributes in terms of shoot and root dry weight, chlorophyll content, protein content, sugar content and nitrate reductase activity as compared to control of respective salinity levels. Exogenous foliar application of SA (0.25 mM), singly and in combination of Trichoderma, ameliorated the hostile effects of salinity up to the level of 8 dSm⁻¹ which showed a significant expansion of plant phenotype as compared to the untreated stressed plants.

Reduced plant growth and dry matter accumulation was observed under salt stress situation.

SA is an important signaling plant molecule which overcomed salinity stress induced responses in plants.

Bio-control agent Trichoderma showed significant improvement in pea under salinity stress.