Salinity effect on grain quality of two durum wheat varieties differing in salt tolerance

The salt tolerant variety Cham-1, created by ICARDA, showed a higher grain yield than the less salt tolerant landrace Haurani, but the main parameters for the pasta quality declined considerably. Salinity had a slight positive effect on the grain quality of the Cham-1 variety, whereas the Haurani variety showed no salinity effect on grain quality. A decrease in ash content corresponded with an increase in water use efficiency. The relationship between ash content and water use efficiency may be useful for selecting varieties with high water efficiency under saline conditions.