Soil salinity is claiming about three hectares of arable land from conventional crop farming every minute. At the same time, the challenge of feeding 9.3 billion people by 2050 is forcing agricultural production into marginal areas, and providing sufficient food for this growing population cannot be achieved without a major breakthrough in crop breeding for salinity tolerance. In this Opinion article, we argue that the current trend of targeting Na+ exclusion mechanisms in breeding programmes for salinity tolerance in crops needs revising. We propose that progress in this area will be achieved by learning from halophytes, naturally salt-loving plants capable of surviving in harsh saline environments, by targeting the mechanisms conferring Na+ sequestration in external storage organs.
History
Publication title
Trends in Plant Science
Volume
19
Issue
11
Pagination
687-691
ISSN
1360-1385
Department/School
Tasmanian Institute of Agriculture (TIA)
Publisher
Elsevier Science London
Place of publication
84 Theobalds Rd, London, England, Wc1X 8Rr
Rights statement
Copyright 2014 Elsevier Ltd.
Repository Status
Restricted
Socio-economic Objectives
Other plant production and plant primary products not elsewhere classified