Response of Indonesian Tropical Legumes to PEG 6000 Drought Stress

Abstract

Plant resistance to drought stress was primary factor for stability  plant performance in dry condition. Poly ethylene glycol (PEG) was one kind of chemical material used for plant selection to drought stress. The study was conducted in Forage Science Laboratory, Animal Agricultural Faculty, Diponegoro University, Semarang, Indonesia. The objective of this study was understood about performance of drought stress for legumes. The study was used PEG-6000 for stressed treatment was arranged in factorial forms using completely randomized design with three replication. The treatment PEG-6000 in distilled water until 1000 ml (w/v) were 0 (control), 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9 and 10 g on ten kinds of legume were Calopo (Calopogonium mucunoides), Crotalaria (Crotalaria juncea),Centro (Centrosema pubescens), Puero (Pueraria phaseoloides),Leucaena (Leucaena leucocephala), Gliricideae (Gliricideae maculate), Sesbania (Sesbania glandifora), green grams ( Vigna udulata), kidney beans (Vigna radiata), and Soybeans(Glycine max).  Parameter in this study were germination percentage, root length, shoot length, shoot weight,  root weight and  shoot/root ratio. Kidney beans have highest seedling percentage of shoot length, root length and shoot weight. Gliricideae have lowest seedling percentage of shoot length, root length, shoot weight and root weight. Kind of legumes have significance difference of shoot length affect by PEG-6000. The increased concentration of PEG will further lower the percentage of germination, shoot length, root length, shoot weight and root weight. The increasing concentration of PEG 6000 given declining percentage germination, shoot length, root length, shoot weight and root weight. Highest shoot/root ratio in legume was  kidney beans and the lowest was  Gliricideae. Calopo, Centro and Gliricideae was very sensitive to drought stress.

Keywords: legumes, poly ethylene glycol, seedling percentage, shoot, root