Using Mannitol as Drought Stress Agent on Globe Artichoke [Cynara cardunculus var. scolymus (L.) Fiori]

The globe artichoke [Cynara cardunculus var. scolymus (L.) Fiori], one of the special members of the Asteraceae family, has been consumed by people for their culinary and health advantages since ancient times. Global agricultural output and production efficiency are both hampered by adverse environmental conditions, notably drought. In order to promote breeding studies, it is crucial to use plants that are adaptable to drought stress, which negatively impacts plant productivity. It is crucial to understand the changes taking place in plants under drought stress. In the present study, artichoke seeds were initially kept in mannitol, which is a commonly used drought stress agent, in three different concentrations (50, 100, and 250 mg L-1) for 8 hours and later on obtained seedlings were subjected to same mannitol concentrations with 15 days intervals. Later on some seed germination and vegetative growth parameters, such as number of leaves, root length, stem height, plant height, chlorophyll, proline, leaf-related water contents, and total phenol-antioxidant contents in three globe artichoke cultivars (Sakız OP, Bayrampaşa OP, and Olympus F1) were investigated under drought stress. Results revealed that the impact of drought stress on artichoke seeds and seedlings varied depending on cultivars and pre-treatment and treatment concentrations.