  Life in salty habitats is a function of tolerance to those chemicals at all
critical phases of a plant's life history. The ability to withstand salt as an
established plant may require different mechanisms and plant traits than those
needed to germinate in salty soils. Seeds establishing themselves in high salt
content may respond differently depending on the light conditions and seed
germinability at the time of salty water imbibition. S. faberi seed (and S.
viridis and S. pumila) plants were discovered thriving along the seacoasts of
Southern Japan. These plants possess the ability to after-ripen, germinate,
emerge and establish themselves, grow and reproduce in the salty soils and
salt-laden atmospheres present in these windy habitats. The objectives of this
paper are to determine the effect of salt (NaCl) in water imbibed by S. faberi
seed during after-ripening and germination, as well temperature and light.
Observations made also provide insights on the possible relationship between
salt and drought tolerance. Seed germination of all phenotypes inhibited by two
percent or more of NaCl. The effects of lesser amounts of NaCl on each of the
three phenotypes was highly dependent on the specific temperature and light
conditions. The three test phenotypes provided a good range to detect responses
to salinity, allowing the observation of both stimulatory and inhibitory
responses.
