Influence of phosphorus on the tolerance of table pea to chloride and sulfate salinity in a sandy soil

Abstract In a greenhouse study, table pea (Pisum sativum L.) was grown from sowing to maturity in Cl‐‐dominated (Cl‐ : SC2‐ 4 = 7:3) and SO2‐ 4‐dominated (Cl‐ : SO2‐ 4 =3:7) saline sandy soil (Typic Torripsamments) at comparable electrical conductivities (ECe 4, 6, and 8 dS m‐1). Each salinity treatment, including the nonsaline control, contained four levels of added P (0, 20, 40, and 80 mg P kg‐1 soil). In P control (Olsen's P 3.5 mg kg‐1), grain yields at ECe 4, 6, and 8 dS m‐1 were 58, 17, and 7% in Cl‐‐dominated salinity and 91, 48, and 37%, respectively, in SO2‐ 4‐dominated salinity. At 20 mg P kg‐1 level (Olsen's P 13 mg kg‐1), grain yields for the respective ECe values were 108, 49, and 13 % in Cl‐‐dominated salinity and 138, 106, and 75% in SO2‐ 4‐dominated salinity, whereas at 80 mg P kg‐1 level (Olsen's P 46 mg kg‐1) yields were 140, 80, and 17% in Cl‐‐dominated salinity and 100, 108, and 128% in SO2‐ 4‐dominated salinity relative to the nonsaline soil. The P requirement at ECe 6 dS m‐1 was twic...