Allelopathic effect of Polygonum aviculare L. extracts on germination and early stages of barley ontogenesis under salt stress

The article is devoted to the study of the combined effect of Polygonum aviculare L. extracts in concentrations of 1.25%, 2.5%, and 5.0% and 0.03M and 0.05M sodium chloride solutions, which are salt stress factors, on the germination and development of barley Hordeum vulgare L. seedlings in vitro. Barley seeds were germinated in Petri dishes and in specially prepared soil. Germination and seed germination energy, as well as fresh weight, root system length, and hypocotyl length of seedlings were assessed (for germination in Petri dishes, the assessment was made on the seventh day, and for germination in soil, on the tenth day of development). It is shown that P. aviculare extracts have a stimulating effect on germination, germination energy and morphometric features of early stages of barley ontogenesis both under salt stress and in its absence, which is manifested in the form of an inversely proportional dependence of these indicators on the concentration of extracts. The maximum reliable positive effect is observed at extract concentrations of 1.25% and 2.5%, but a further increase in this indicator to 5.0% reduces the stimulating effect on all the studied indicators. A similar effect was observed in an experiment with germination of barley seeds in soil: aqueous extracts of knotweed of minimum and medium concentrations also had a stimulating effect on the germination energy of seeds (for germination, such a reliable effect was not revealed), fresh weight of seedlings and the average length of the root system. The results of the experiment demonstrate the ability of plant extracts with pharmacological properties to have a stimulating effect on the development of agricultural crops.