Exogenous Effect of Sugar Beet Extract On Physio-biochemical Traits of Hordeum vulgare L. Under Induced Salinity Stress

Catastrophic changes in the earth brought on by dwindling annual precipitation and rising temperatures eventually lead to the salinization of the soil. These circumstances result in decreased yield production, which moves the globe closer to food security. The goal of the present study was to clarify the impact of sugar beet extract (SBE) as a bio-stimulant to lessen the salt stress (40 mM) on several physiological and biochemical parameters of barley. Seeds of Hordeum vulgare L. (Barley-13 genotype) were pre-soaked in various concentrations (10, 20, 30, 40, and 50%) of SBE for five hours. SBE was analyzed for glycine betaine, betalains, total phenols, flavonoids, vitamin E, vitamin C, sugar, protein and oxalic recorded 100 mmol/kg, 1.36 mg/L, 1.30 g/100 ml, 0.59 mg/ml, 0.002%, 8.04g/100 ml, 8 g/100 ml, 1.39 mg/100 ml and 38 mg/100 ml respectively, along with elemental composition. Significant improvement were observed in morpho-physiological attributes including stomatal and epidermal physiology along with agronomic parameters including germination energy (GE), mean emergence time (MET), coefficient of velocity of germination (CVG), germination rate index (GRI) and timson germination index (TGI) time to 50% emergence (T₅₀) during exposure to salinity stress. Physio-biochemical parameters including chlorophyll and carotenoid contents were found maximum in 40% SBE, soluble sugar, protein, proline, and peroxidase (POD) were maximum in 50% SBE, while superoxide dismutase (SOD) were maximum in 20% SBE. Conclusively, SBE play a significant role in the development and promotion of agronomic and physiological attributes of barley and thereby boost crop output in arid, semi-arid, and salty environments, which will benefit global economy.