Assessing the Impact of Sugar Beetroot Extract on the Improvement of Salt Tolerance in Wheat Varieties through Hydroponic Cultivation

Wheat is a primary dietary source for the majority of Pakistan's population and is also cultivated on a global scale. Salinity is one of the primary abiotic stresses that significantly reduce cereal yield and growth. However, this problem can be resolved by incorporating salinity tolerance into the wheat crop. The objective of this experiment was to examine the bio-stimulant potential of foliar application of sugar beetroot extracts (SBE) to alleviate the adverse effects of salinity on wheat. In hydroponic conditions, wheat varieties Anaaj-17 and Gandum-1 were exposed to variable concentrations of SBE (0%, 10%, 20%, and 30%). The wheat varieties were cultivated in two distinct environments: non-saline S0, which contained 2 mM NaCl, and saline S1, which contained 100 mM NaCl. The evaluation was conducted using a variety of morphological characteristics (shoot, root length, shoot, root fresh weight, shoot, root dry weight, root shoot ratio) and biochemical parameters (Na+, K+ in root and leaf, chlorophyll, and relative water contents in leaves) and wheat plants were harvested 30 days after transplanting. Utilizing a completely randomized design (CRD), the experiment was conducted in a factorial arrangement with three replications. The foliar application of SBE improved the salinity tolerance of wheat. The SBE-30% dosage application exhibited superior results when contrasted with other concentrations. The foliar applications of SBE significantly enhanced the chlorophyll contents in the leaf and facilitated the growth of the shoots and roots. The SBE was determined to be advantageous in that it decreased the sodium content and increased the potassium content of foliage and roots. It was determined that SBE is effective in promoting wheat growth in both saline and non-saline hydroponic environments