Physiological and growth attributes of salt-stressed tomato plants in response to foliar application of nano phosphorus or potassium

Abstract: The present study aims to explore various alternatives to alleviate the detrimental effects of salinity on tomato plants subjected to salt stress. An experiment was conducted in pots during the growing seasons of 2021 and 2022. Hybrid Super Strain B of tomato (Solanum lycopersicon) seedlings were transplanted in pots with a diameter of 0.3 m and a capacity of 15 liters, filled with washed sand. Subsequently, fresh water was used for irrigation for two weeks, after which salinity treatments were applied. To achieve targeted EC levels (control, 2000, 3000, and 4000 ppm), saline water was mixed with fresh water. Two weeks after transplantation, foliar sprays of nano-K or nano-P were administered three times during the seasons, at two-week intervals. The findings indicate that increasing salinity levels had a significant negative impact on the growth and production aspects of all plants. However, the negative impacts were mitigated by the application of nano fertilizers, particularly nano-K. The results suggest that the mitigation effects of foliar application of nano fertilizers could be attributed to the partial recovery of nutrient imbalances caused by salinity stress.