IMPACT OF PURE POTASSIUM IODIDE AS ABIOTIC STRESS ON GERMINATION AND EARLY SEEDLING GROWTH OF SOME MORPHOLOGICAL ATTRIBUTES OF BUSH BERRY (MAESOBOTRYA BARTERI)

The present study tested the effect of pure KI as an abiotic stress factor on germination and early-stage seedling growth of Maesobotrya barteri, an economically important fruitbearing plant of West African origin. Data were collected on several growth metrics under controlled conditions. Various physiological and morphological parameters were sought to be studied, involving temperature, light intensity, pH, TDS, leaf area, shoot length, root length, and other critical growth attributes. The treatment combinations were the following: consisted of 0.001%, 0.01%, 0.1%, and 1% different KI concentrations compared to the control group (0%) carried out in triplicates. The results revealed significant differences in these parameters among the treatment groups, indicating that higher concentrations of KI adversely affected the germination rates and overall growth of the seedlings. Statistical analyses, specifically Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), were performed to ascertain the significance of the observed differences. Significant differences appeared in most of the germination rates and growth parameters of Maesobotrya barteri, while most of them showed undesirable effects on the physiological responses to a higher concentration of KI. ANOVA presented a considerable difference among the treatments in almost all the parameters of the toxic effect of KI on plant growth parameters. These results agree with previous research that has shown the adverse effects of salinity and osmotic stress on plant growth and thus support the hypothesis that KI, while important for certain physiological processes, may be causing inhibitory stress toward optimal growth of Maesobotrya barteri. Contributions are made by this study toward an enhanced understanding of the complex interaction between abiotic stressors and plant growth and provide valuable insights into the development of future agriculture and stress management strategies.