Development and validation of a membership function-based evaluation system for salinity screening in rice Mathankumar P.1, Geetha S.2,*, Saraswathi R.3, Raveendran M.4, Vijayalakshmi D.5, Suresh R.6 1Department of Genetics and Plant Breeding, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore - 641003, India 2Department of Pulses, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore - 641003, India 3Department of Plant Genetic Resources, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore - 641003, India 4Directorate of Research, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore - 641003, India 5Department of Crop Physiology, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore - 641003, India 6Department of Rice, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore - 641003, India *E-Mail: geethagovind1@gmail.com
Online Published on 22 January, 2024. Abstract Salinity is a major abiotic stress that affects plant growth and development in rice. In this study, 37 genotypes along with 2 checks were screened for salinity at the seedling stage using hydroponics. Analysis of variance revealed a significant difference among genotypes for the recorded traits. Most studies have evaluated the salt tolerance based on the independent mean performance of traits. However, this study aimed to utilize membership function values which account for cumulative tolerance from all traits. Based on average MFV, three genotypes were classified as highly tolerant, four genotypes were classified as tolerant, 25 genotypes were classified as moderately tolerant, six genotypes were classified as susceptible, one genotype as highly susceptible. Simple linear regression analysis indicated total fresh weight is the reliable trait for salinity screening in rice at the seedling stage. Further, a multiple regression-based mathematical model was developed, which identified that a membership function-based evaluation system can be utilized for salinity tolerance grading. The identified highly tolerant and tolerant genotypes can be utilized for the improvement of salt tolerance at the seedling stage in rice. Top Keywords Rice, Salinity, Membership function values, Regression. Top |