Salt-Tolerant Grasses

Saline areas should not be left bare for extended periods. Very saline soils (8 to 10 mS/cm) should be seeded to a mixture of salt-tolerant forages (Table 2). Saline areas are often wet, so crops need to be tolerant to salt and water.

Salt-tolerant grasses are seeded in the fall when the saline seeps are dry and accessible. Seeding rates for saline seeps are double those for non-saline areas.

Forage crops for saline soils and flooded areas (Henry et al. 1987)

Salinity Rating (EC)^*	Forage Mix	Seeding Rate for Hay or Pasture (kg/ha)
a. Soils with Little or No Spring Flooding (up to 2 weeks)
Slight to Moderate (2-6 dS/m)	bromegrass + Russian wild ryegrass + alfalfa (Rambler)	4+4+4
	bromegrass + slender wheatgrass + alfalfa (Rambler)	4+4+4
	Russian wild ryegrass + alfalfa	6+3
	altai wild ryegrass + alfalfa	10+3
	crested wheatgrass + alfalfa	7+3
	altai wild ryegrass	11
	slender wheatgrass + sweet clover (short-term stands and not over 1 week of flooding)	8+6
Severe (6-10 dS/m)	bromegrass + Russian wild ryegrass + slender wheatgrass	4+4+4
	altai wild ryegrass + alfalfa	10+3
	altai wild ryegrass	11
	tall wheatgrass (moist districts or seepage areas)	12
Very Severe (10-15 dS/m)	Russian wild ryegrass + slender wheatgrass	4+4
	altai wild ryegrass + alfalfa	10+3
	altai wild ryegrass	10
	tall wheatgrass (moist districts or seepage areas)	12
b. Soils with Spring Flooding (2-5 weeks)
Little or No (0-2 dS/m)	reed canarygrass + bromegrass	4+6
	reed canarygrass + timothy	4+4
	timothy + bromegrass	4+6
	altai wild ryegrass + alfalfa	10+3
	altai wild ryegrass	11
Slight to Moderate (2-6 dS/m)	reed canarygrass + bromegrass	4+6
	reed canarygrass + bromegrass + slender wheatgrass	4+6+6
	altai wild ryegrass + alfalfa	10+3
	altai wild ryegrass	11
Severe to Very Severe (6-15 dS/m)	altai wild ryegrass + alfalfa	10+3
	slender wheatgrass	8
	altai wild ryegrass	11
	tall wheatgrass	12

^*EC - electrical conductivity based on saturated paste, in deciSiemens per meter.

For more information about the content of this document, contact Karen Raven.
This document is maintained by Laura Thygesen.
This information published to the web on February 12, 2004.
Last Reviewed/Revised on November 17, 2015.