Effect of Simulated Drought Stress on the Physiological Characteristics of Cerasus cerasoides Leaves

Purpose In order to study the adaptability of Cerasus cerasoides under drought stress.

Method Through simulation drought stress by different polyethylene glycol (PEG-8000) treatments (5%, 10% and 20%), the physiological changes of leaves every 2 days were tested.

Result The relative conductivity in leaves continued to rise with the increase of PEG content and the prolongation of stress time. The relative conductivity in leaves increased significantly in the severe drought stress (20%) compared with the other two treatments, with a promotion of 189.21% after 8 days (P<0.05). The content of malondialdehyde (MDA) also showed an upward trend in all treatments. The change of MDA in mild drought stress (5%) treatment was relatively slow with an increase of 25.59%, while those in moderate drought stress (10%) and severe drought stress treatments (20%) increased more significantly by 55.78% and 145.25% respectively after 8 days. The content of soluble sugar increased under drought stress, and the increase in mild drought stress was the slowest, rising by 31.26% after 8 days, while that in severe drought stress increased by 87.78% after 8 days. The relative water content (RWC) showed a decrease trend, and in severe drought stress the leaf water content decreased by 41.62% after 8 days, which was much more significant than the other two treatments. Correlation analysis showed that the relative conductivity, MDA content and soluble sugar content were positively correlated, and leaf water content was negatively correlated with conductivity, MDA and soluble sugar.

Conclusion The physiological changes in the leaves of C. cerassoides indicate that the drought resistance is poor in seedlings.