Searching for crop cultivars that are resilient to environmental stresses is crucial for maintaining global agricultural production. Our study aimed to screen semiarid-adapted cotton cultivars performing well under water-restricted conditions. Trials were conducted in a greenhouse involving six cotton cultivars (FM 911, FM 912, FM 970, FM 974, FM 978, and FM 985) subjected to four water levels (100, 80, 60, and 40% field capacity—FC). At 20 days post-drought imposition, the growth, leaf succulence, osmotic potential, gas exchanges, photosynthetic pigments, and lipid peroxidation were measured. Cotton plants showed reduced growth and gas exchanges at 60% and 40%, displaying elevated sensibility at 40% FC. Under 60% FC, FM 970 and FM 985 exhibited a superior dry biomass, leaf area, and growth, indicating high drought tolerance. FM 911, FM 912, and FM 978 displayed higher rates of net photosynthesis, transpiration, stomatal conductance, and chlorophyll content under 60% and 40% FC, but also demonstrated an increased lipid peroxidation. Additionally, FM 911, FM 970, and FM 974 had the lowest osmotic potential values. Field capacity at 60% and 40% represent moderate and severe drought conditions for cotton. The superior performance of FM 970, FM 978, and FM 985 under drought is attributed to pigment accumulation and photosynthetic efficiency. Our findings suggest that a water-saving strategy with an 80% FC can enhance sustainable production and identify promising cotton cultivars for cultivation in water-scarce regions.

The need for studies that allow the use of brackish water in irrigated agriculture and the socioeconomic importance of melon cultivation in Brazil, especially for the Northeast region, which concentrates most of the national production and faces problems with the availability of good quality water for irrigation, motivated the present study. In this context, the objective of present study was to evaluate the growth, production and fruit quality of the ‘Goldex’ (yellow-type hybrid F1) melon under salt stress conditions. The experiment was performed in a completely randomized design, with two salinity levels of irrigation water (0.8 and 4.0 dS m^-1) and eight evaluation times (52, 54, 56, 58, 60, 62, 64, and 66 days after transplanting). Variables of plant growth and development, production and quality of melon fruits were evaluated throughout the cycle. Plants had delayed growth characteristics and less development with the increase in irrigation water salinity, showing reductions of more than 20% in shoot dry weight, leaf area, number of branches and length of secondary branches and 16.7% in length of the main branch. In addition, salinity caused a delay in fruit development and a 16% reduction in final fruit weight, without significantly modifying carbohydrate and total soluble solids contents. Along the development, there was an increase in the total soluble solids content of the fruits, especially due to the increment of sucrose at the final stages of development.