To isolate the effects of high concentrations of different salts in solution, response of osmotic pressure, kind of salts, and pH two trials were performed with two bean cultivars: Diamante Negro and OPNS 331. The treatments consisted of NaNO3, NaCl, NaHCO3, KNO3, KCl, or KHCO3 solutions, and a control without salts, in a randomized block design, with four replicates. In the first trial, germination and vigor were studied in 60 mmol L-1 solutions and growth in a nutrient solution enriched with salts at the indicated concentration. In the second trial, the seeds were germinated in deionized water and the seedlings were transplanted to nutrient solution with 60 mmol L-1 salts at the indicated pH, with an additional treatment in which the pH of the nutrient solution with NaCl was raised to 8.5 to coincide with the bicarbonate solution. The plant growth variables were evaluated for the two bean cultivars studied. The salinity promoted reductions in growth and the harmful effects caused by high salt concentrations and pH, in both common bean varieties under study, may be ranked in the order: osmotic pressure > alkalinity > bicarbonate ≈ chloride > sodium.
salinity; alkalinity; Phaseolus vulgaris
