Progress of Euhalophyte Adaptation to Arid Areas to Remediate Salinized Soil

Yanyan Wang, Shiqi Wang, Zhenyong Zhao, Ke Zhang, Changyan Tian and Wenxuan Mai ()
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Yanyan Wang: State Key Laboratory of Desert and Oasis Ecology, Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Urumqi 830011, China
Shiqi Wang: State Key Laboratory of Desert and Oasis Ecology, Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Urumqi 830011, China
Zhenyong Zhao: State Key Laboratory of Desert and Oasis Ecology, Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Urumqi 830011, China
Ke Zhang: State Key Laboratory of Desert and Oasis Ecology, Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Urumqi 830011, China
Changyan Tian: State Key Laboratory of Desert and Oasis Ecology, Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Urumqi 830011, China
Wenxuan Mai: State Key Laboratory of Desert and Oasis Ecology, Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Urumqi 830011, China

Agriculture, 2023, vol. 13, issue 3, 1-17

Abstract: With the increasing shortage of water resources, the current management of saline–alkali lands in semi-arid and arid areas has gradually transformed from “flooding irrigation with drainage” in the past to the combination of controlling regional water and salt balance, phytoremediation, and comprehensive utilization of halophyte resources. However, soil salinization caused by natural and anthropogenic factors has still been a major global environmental problem, which changes the chemical and physical properties of soil, deteriorates the quality of underground water, and decreases biodiversity, contributing to the loss of soil productivity and the succession of the halotolerant species. Euhalophytes, as the materials for phytoremediation, have been confirmed to be effective species in improving saline–alkali soils. They can redistribute salts in soil profile through the interaction of their desalinization potential and irrigation water leaching, thereby preventing secondary salinization and improving soil productivity for long-term reclamation of saline soil. In this review, the adaptation mechanisms of euhalophytes to saline soils are generalized from the views of morphological, physiological, and molecular aspects and evaluated for their potential to remediate saline soil through salt removal and promoting leaching. Euhalophytes can not only sequestrate salts inside the central vacuole of cells to tolerate higher salt stress by means of organ succulence, ion compartmentalization, and osmotic adjustment but facilitate water infiltration and salts leaching through root–soil interaction. The root system’s mechanical penetration increases soil porosity, decreases soil density, as well as stabilizes soil aggregates. Moreover, the suitability of phytoremediation in arid situations with low precipitation and non-irrigation and some agricultural practices need to be taken into account to avoid salts returning to the soil as forms of litter and deep tillage altering salt distribution. Hence, euhalophytes planting in semi-arid and arid areas should be evaluated from their adaptation, desalinization, and prospective commercial values, such as foods, biofuels, and medical development to alleviate soil secondary salinization crisis and enhance the productivity of arable agricultural land.

Keywords: salinization; euhalophyte; phytoremediation; adaptation mechanism; remediation of salinized soil (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q1 Q10 Q11 Q12 Q13 Q14 Q15 Q16 Q17 Q18 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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