Effect of Chloride and Sulphate Salts on Tube Growth and Rate of Respiration in Garden Poppy (Papaver Rhoeas L.) Pollen

Supplementation of salts to basal germination medium except 4 and 8 mM KC1 caused inhibition of tube growth. At 4 mM concentration, NaCl caused maximum inhibition while at 16 mM, Na₂SO₄ was the most inhibitory for pollen tube growth as compared to other salts of the identical concentration. Respiration increased in the first 10 min of tipping of pollen in the basal germination medium and remained steady for the next 10 min and then showed a peak at 30 min of incubation. Addition of salts to the basal germination medium lowered the rate of pollen respiration at 30 min of incubation which seems to be probable cause of reduced tube growth.