Published online by Cambridge University Press: 12 June 2017
The combination of salts at the approximate ratio found in saline irrigation water, (NaCl 41.9 mM, CaCl2 20.9 mM, and MgCl2.6H2O 10.5 mM), with either 1 mM EPTC (S-ethyl dipropylthiocarbamate) or 0.1 mM CDEC (2-chloroallyl diethyldithiocarbamate) induced a greater reduction of root length, shoot length, and fresh weight of tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill. ‘VF-315’) relative to either factor alone. The osmotic pressure of this salt solution is 0.40 MPa (mega Pascal), which is equivalent to 4.0 bar or ca. 4.0 atm. Similar results were found in lettuce (Lactuca sativa L. ‘Great Lakes–659’) using salts at 0.30 MPa (NaCl 31.4 mM, CaCl2 15.7 mM, and MgCl2.6H2O 7.3 mM) combined with either 0.75 mM EPTC or 0.2 mM CDEC. In tomato, the inhibition was additive for each parameter measured. In lettuce, however, the effect on fresh weight and shoot length was synergistic and the effect on root length was additive. Calcium chloride was the single salt component of the mixture, which when combined with either EPTC or CDEC, induced a significant reduction of root length, shoot length, and fresh weight in tomato relative to either factor alone. No additional reduction in growth was found in lettuce when each individual salt was combined with either EPTC or CDEC.