IN VITRO EFFECTS OF CLITORIA TERNATEA AQUEOUS EXTRACT ON PHYSICOCHEMICAL COMPONENTS AND GROWTH OF ACHILLEA FRAGRANTISSIMA L. CULTIVATED UNDER SALINITY STRESS

Clitoria ternatea flowers aquatic extract (CTFAE) contains a mixture of essential elements, which promote plant growth and yield.Achillea fragrantissima is a medicinal plant native in Saudi Arabia.It has antiviral, anti-neuroinflammatory, anticancer and antispasmodic.Salinity is a primary abiotic environmental challenge, disrupting source-sink relationships, senescence, cellular metabolisms, and ultimately hindering plant growth and development.In this study, a novel strategy for enhancing A. fragrantissima propagation under salinity stress by applying a natural plant growth enhancer, CTFAE, to in-vitro plantlets were investigated.The experiment was conducted using a split-plot design with salinity levels as the main factor and CTFAE concentrations as the sub-factor.The CTFAE at concentrations of 0.5 g/L or 1.0 g/L and distinct concentrations of seawater were introduced to the MS media to set salinity level (2000 ppm and 4000 ppm).Our results revealed that CTFAE effectively enhanced A. fragrantissima seed germination and plant growth during multiplication and rooting stages, as well as increased the phytochemical compounds in A. fragrantissima plants as compared to control treatment.Furthermore, for plants that were exposed to 4000 ppm salinity levels, the application of 0.5 g/L CTFAE was able to alleviate the salinity-induced adverse effects on some of the plant growth parameters.