Effects of Superabsorbent Polymers(SAP) on Growth and Photosynthesis of Pepper Plants under Water Stress

Effect of superabsorbent polymers(SAP) on the growth and chlorophyll content of leaves,as well as the photosynthesis was conducted with pepper variety 'Chaoyue No.5'in flowering stage under 10 days and 20 days medium water stress and the subsequent recovery process.The results showed that:(1)Water stress inhibit the growth mass,chlorophyll content and photosynthesis.(2)Adding 2‰ of SAP significantly decreased Ls,WUE,significantly increased the plant height,stem diameter,dry fresh weight,chlorophyll content,and Pn,Ci,Gs,Tr under the water stress.(3)Under moderate water stress SAP can significant mitigate this damage in a short period of time,while the effect of SAP is limited with the time.(4)When resumed the normal water supply,the plant growth,chlorophyll content and photosynthetic parameters were significantly higher with SAP than that without SAP,while the recovery effect under short time stress was significantly better than that under long time stress.It indicates that SAP treatment could increase photosynthetic parameters,improve the growth and relieve the water stress of damage on pepper by increasing the content of chlorophyll,and with the shorter time of water stress,the better effect of the SAP.