Effect of ascorbic acid on morphological and biochemical parameters in tomato seedling exposure to salt stress

Abstract The aim of this study is to determine the effect of both NaCl and KCl alone and in comparison to AsA on the morphological and some biochemical parameters of Oxheart and Vilma cultivars of tomato under laboratory and field conditions. A combination of salt applied in the laboratory experiment caused a significant effect on seed germination and root and shoot length and a significant reduction of Chl a, Chl b and Car contents in 14-day-old tomato seedlings. However, seedlings of cultivar Vilma were characterised by higher tolerance to applied salt stress. NaCl caused a significant decrease in Chl a, Chl b and Car, and an increase in Pro and MDA content in the leaves of Vilma cultivar under field conditions. Besides, tomato plants cv. Vilma treated with NaCl alone or NaCl with ascorbic acid developed longer roots, from 48 to 73%, compared to the control.