Two experiments were conducted to assess the effect of different salt
levels and irrigation periods on some reproductive characters and chemical
properties of seeds of two peas ( Pisum sativum L.) cultivars; Alderman (tall
cultivar) & Little marvel (short cultivar).The experiment included the use
of drainage water at three salt levels: 2 , 4 , and 6 dsm-1 in addition to Al-
Diwaniya river water (1.4 dsm-1) as a control treatment and three
irrigation periods; 2 , 4 , or 6 days and the combination of the two factors.
The measurements included: number of pods per plant, pod length, number
of seeds per pod, fresh & dry weight of pods. Also some chemical properties
of seeds such as percentage of carbohydrate, proteins and fibers were
determined.
The results showed that salt levels of 4 and 6 dsm-1 levels and the prolong
of irrigation periods decreased significantly pods number and length in the
two cultivars. Seeds number per pod also decreased significantly by using
the 4 and 6 dsm-1 salt levels in Alderman while in Little Marvel cultivar all
salt levels caused such a decrease. Irrigation periods had no effect. All salt
treatments caused a pronounced reduction in fresh and dry weight of pods.
The protein and carbohydrates percentage in seeds were decreased also due
to the effect of all salt treatments in both cultivars while fiber percentage
increased only in Alderman cultivar. Irrigation periods had no significant
effect on the percentage of fibers, but lengthen the periods caused
significant reduction in proteins and carbohydrates content. The
combination of salts at 6 dsm-1 and irrigation every six days wasthe most
negatively effective treatment in all parameters studied.