Rice is more sensitive to salinity than previously thought

Greenhouse and field studies have shown that rice is very sensitive to salinity, a problem in rice fields that have held irrigation water in order to reduce pesticide loads. Grain yields have been shown to decline when the average seasonal salinity of the field water exceeds 1.9 deciSiemens per meter. The yields characteristics negatively affected by salinity included stand establishment; panicles, tillers, and spikelet quantities; floret sterility; grain size; and heading delays. Salinity had the greatest negative impact on emergence and early seedling growth rates.