Successive Harvesting Interval and Salinity Level Modulate Biomass Production and Nutritional Value in Sarcocornia fruticosa and Arthrocaulon macrostachyum

Tesfaye Asmare Sisay, Jaykumar Patel, Kusum Khatri, Babita Choudhary, Dominic Standing (), Zai Du Nja, Muki Shpigel, Luísa Margarida Batista Custódio, Ilya Gelfand and Moshe Sagi ()
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Tesfaye Asmare Sisay: The Albert Katz International School for Desert Studies, the Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Sede Boqer Campus, Beer Sheva 8499000, Israel
Jaykumar Patel: Jacob Blaustein Center for Scientific Cooperation, the Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Sede Boqer Campus, Sede Boker 8499000, Israel
Kusum Khatri: Jacob Blaustein Center for Scientific Cooperation, the Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Sede Boqer Campus, Sede Boker 8499000, Israel
Babita Choudhary: Jacob Blaustein Center for Scientific Cooperation, the Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Sede Boqer Campus, Sede Boker 8499000, Israel
Dominic Standing: The Albert Katz Department of Dryland Biotechnologies, French Associates Institute for Agriculture and Biotechnology of Dryland, the Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Sede Boqer Campus, Beer Sheva 8499000, Israel
Zai Du Nja: The Albert Katz International School for Desert Studies, the Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Sede Boqer Campus, Beer Sheva 8499000, Israel
Muki Shpigel: Morris Kahn Marine Research Station, the Leon H. Charney School of Marine Sciences, University of Haifa, Haifa 3498838, Israel
Luísa Margarida Batista Custódio: Centre of Marine Sciences, University of Algarve, Campus de Gambelas, 8005-139 Faro, Portugal
Ilya Gelfand: The Albert Katz Department of Dryland Biotechnologies, French Associates Institute for Agriculture and Biotechnology of Dryland, the Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Sede Boqer Campus, Beer Sheva 8499000, Israel
Moshe Sagi: The Albert Katz Department of Dryland Biotechnologies, French Associates Institute for Agriculture and Biotechnology of Dryland, the Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Sede Boqer Campus, Beer Sheva 8499000, Israel

Agriculture, 2025, vol. 15, issue 21, 1-24

Abstract: Halophyte bio-saline agriculture can supplement conventional farm methods in salinized soils and salty water. The current study compares the yield and nutritional value of new Sarcocornia fruticosa ecotypes (Shikmona, Megadim, Naaman, and Ruhama) to those of the current ecotype (VM). Additionally, Arthrocaulon macrostachyum , phenotypically similar to Sarcocornia , was compared to Sarcocornia ecotypes, and the effects of the harvesting regime and irrigation water salinity on yield and nutritional value were studied. At both salinity levels (50 and 150 mM NaCl), 30-day harvesting intervals over a 210-day growth period increased plant yield compared to a 21-day regime. It also tended to improve electrical conductivity (EC) and total soluble sugars (TSS), lower malondialdehyde levels (a marker of toxic stress), and enhance radical inhibition activity in most ecotypes. Compared to VM, the Sarcocornia ecotypes Ruh and Naa exhibited much higher biomass with similar radical inhibition activity but lower total protein content. Higher salinity improved fresh biomass, shoot diameter, relative water content, chlorophyll level, TSS, and EC and tended to increase anthocyanin and carotenoid levels. In contrast, lower salinity tended to increase total flavonoids, polyphenols, and radical inhibition activity. In the 30-day harvest regime, A. macrostachyum exhibited the highest and second-highest yields at high and low salinity, respectively; the highest shoot diameter, total flavonoids, and radical inhibition activity; and one of the lowest malondialdehyde levels. The current study highlights the importance of optimizing harvest frequency and the advantages of employing A. macrostachyum and the Sarcocornia ecotypes Ruhama, Naaman, and Megadim with a 30-day harvesting regime under higher-salinity conditions.

Keywords: halophytes; harvesting regimes; biomass; antioxidant; salinity; Sarcocornia; Arthrocaulon macrostachyum (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: 2025
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