Soil salinization processes have increased over the years and affect large parts of agricultural fields. The purpose of this review was to highlight the most important aspects regarding the potential effects of soil salinity on plants. In the current context of climate change, extreme weather and increased drought periods can lead to plant metabolic dysfunctionalities and accumulation of salt ions because of the increasing need for irrigation. The most important limiting factor, salinity, has a highly negative impact on plant growth independent of the appearance of either natural or anthropic status. The negative aspects include decreased leaf development rate, a low water level in all parts of the plant, reduced cell division and elongation, and low-intensity photosynthetic rate. Other negative aspects are directly related to stomata closure, reduced transpiration, low CO₂ level, and limitations on seed germination. However, there are also some positive aspects to the presence of salinity in soil. The field offers unlimited possibilities of research in order to activate pathways that help plants become resistant to salt stress. Several physiological parameters can benefit from low salt concentration (halopriming), such as germination, vigor, rapid seedling growth, and increased stomata number. Further studies should focus on both the positive and negative aspects of the increase in soil salinity.

Seed dormancy is a major impediment for the production of Salvia officinalis L. (sage) seedlings. This study aims to test seed priming methods to break the dormancy of sage seeds in controlled conditions. Seeds were subjected to four treatments respectively hydropriming, magneto-priming, electro-priming and control with no seed priming techniques. During germination development stage all parameters were registered according to BBCH (Biologische Bundesanstalt, Bundessortenamt und CHemische Industrie) standardized scale. Daily assessments were made, germination indices were calculated, new germination secondary stages were observed and described, and daily range for each secondary stage were obtained. All priming methods had different effect on sage seeds. The hydropriming treatment was the most effective with 70% seeds germinated in 10 days. Sage seeds from magneto-priming determine more than 50% seeds to germinate in only 8 days. Control and electropriming treatment showed a similar value of seed germination, set around 64-65%. In control, electro- and hydropriming treatments are necessary 6 days for the achievement of more than 50% seed germination, while for magneto-priming are necessary 8 days. Hydropriming has the highest germination index, significantly higher than control and magneto-priming. During the germination, hydropriming shows a gradual transition of seeds from one BBCH sub-stage to another, while electro- and magneto-priming induce a heterogenous variation through the entire process. Overall, the hydropriming treatment registered better results of sage germination compared to the control treatment.

Soil salinity in wheat represents a severe threat to global productivity, requiring a deep understanding of physiological adaptation mechanisms to ensure food security in the context of continuous agricultural land degradation. The study aim was to assess the impact of a salinity gradient (0–75 mM NaCl) on the dynamics of stomatal opening and chlorophyll content of the varieties Glosa, Taisa, Boema and Granny. The methodology integrated four joint classes, of which two were from detailed physiological parameters, stomatal features and chlorophyll content, and two morphological characteristics, growth visual indices and biomass allocation. All data was corroborated into an original hierarchical synthesis model presented in a multi-layered sunburst plot. The most relevant results indicate that the concentration of 45 mM NaCl represents the osmotic adjustment threshold, where the active accumulation of ions decreases the internal osmotic potential, facilitating an influx of water that maximizes guard cell turgor and, implicitly, stomatal width. Maximal physiological parameters and biomass ranked the variety Granny first, followed by Taisa. Despite stomatal increases, Boema ranked third and Glosa showed overall decreased development and the lowest plant biomass. These findings validate the use of interconnected effects analysis as a screening tool for identifying the salinity responses of wheat varieties.