Maize Seedling Responses to Combined Salinity and Temperature Stress during Early Growth Stage

Maize is one of the most widely cultivated warm-season cereal crops worldwide. Its widespread use in both human and animal nutrition increases its economic importance. Salinity and temperature stresses are major abiotic factors adversely affecting maize growth and productivity. Low and high temperature extremes, along with salinity, limit plant growth and development. The aim of this study was to evaluate the response of two different maize cultivars (Zea mays indentata – Hiva and Zea mays indurata –DKC 6727) to different salinity concentrations (0, 5, 10 and 15 EC) at low (15 °C) and high temperature (30 °C). Germination percentage (GP, %), ion leakage (IL, %), shoot (SL, cm) and root length (RL, cm), and fresh (FBW, mg) and dry biomass weight (DBW, mg) data were recorded. As a result of the study, both low temperature and increased salinity levels had negative effects on all seedling-related traits in both maize varieties. DKC 6727 variety was the least affected by low temperature and high salinity levels. This research offers preliminary insights that may contribute to the screening of salt tolerance during the early growth stage and suggests that temperature could play a role in modulating the effects of salinity stress.