Relative Effect of Sodium Chloride on the Development of Certain Legumes 1

The experiment here reported was initiated to observe the relative reaction to NaCl of certain leguminous crops cultivated extensively in California. Because of the complexity of the problem no effort has been made to arrive at the absolute tolerance of any variety and even the relative tolerance, indicated under the conditions of this experiment, may not be maintained under changed conditions or with other salts or combinations of salts. Thirteen selected varieties were grown in the greenhouse in i-quart glass jars filled with chemically pure quartz sand, to which alkali in the form of NaCl was added in five different concentrations, viz., 2,000, 8,000, 15,000, 25,000, and 50,000 parts per million of solution, equivalent to 0.04 percent, 0.16 percent, 0.3 percent, 0.5 percent, and t.o percent respectively of alkali based on the dry weight of the sand. In addition each jar was supplied from time to time with plant food in the form of a standard nutrient solution. Each variety was also grown in a culture receiving no NaCl. Sprouted seeds of all varieties were placed in the sand on September 10, but the seeds were placed in the germinator in preparation for the experiment as follows: Windsor bean and garbanzo, September 3; Cranberry, Red Kidney, Bayo,