ALBERT

Description: Bald cypress (Taxodiumdistichum (L.) Rich.) seedlings from two sources in Louisiana were tested for a possible difference in salt tolerance. The study was conducted in rhizotrons under controlled environmental-conditions. Seedlings were subjected to a control (no flood or salt) and three combinations of flooding salinity: flooding only, flooding plus 68 mol•m−3 salt (4 ppt), and flooding plus 136 mol•m−3 salt (8 ppt). Both populations survived the flooding and salinity treatments for the duration of the study. However, gas exchange and net biomass production were reduced in both populations as salinity of floodwater increased from 0 to 136 mol•m−3. The gas exchange and biomass data indicated that plants from the freshwater source had higher growth rates than the brackish plants. This superiority was also maintained under all the treatments except the highest salinity treatment. Significantly greater net photosynthetic capacity per unit area of leaf was found for the freshwater population than for the brackish population in 68 mol•m−3 salt. In addition, greater root porosity, height growth, and biomass production (shoot, root) were found for the freshwater population than for the brackish population under different treatments. The data indicate that there is a potential for population differentiation in bald cypress, as shown primarily by differences in growth traits. However, the data do not support the hypothesis that bald cypress plants from the brackish source have a capacity to survive and grow better in saltwater than plants from the freshwater source. In fact, combined flooding and salinity treatments resulted in significant reductions in net photosynthesis as compared with the control in both sources.