Impact of magnetically treated saline water on seed germination, growth properties and productivity of greenhouse cucumber

Abstract

The current study was designed to investigate the effects of the magnetically treated saline water technique and different socking times on seed germi-nation, growth performance, yield, and production of cucumbers. Magnetically treated saline water (at 14500 gausses) was used compared with non-mag-netic water for experimental seeds, which were treated with four different stocking periods: fast, 2, 4, and 6 hours. Three experiments were carried out under plastic greenhouse conditions at different growing stages. The results indicated that soaking the seeds in magnetized water resulted in increased germination percentage and reduced the required time for seed germination compared with non-mag-netized water. Using magnetic water enhanced seed-ling growth parameters, i.e., number of leaves, length, diameter, root length, and chlorophyll. Mag-netic water led to early flowering compared to non-magnetic saline water, where the control treatment delayed flowering. Significant increases in fruit length, diameter, and weight were detected, resulting in increased production of cucumbers when magnet-ized water was used. Furthermore, the nutrient con-tent (N, P, K and Ca) in leaves significantly in-creased in the plants magnetically treated saline wa-ter more than untreated control. On the contrary, the highest concentrations of Na and Cl in plant leaves were found in untreated plants. In conclusion, soak-ing cucumber seeds in magnetized water for 2 hours and using magnetized irrigation water during grow-ing seasons enhanced germination rate, growth, and yield under salinity conditions.