The Plant List Trees Deciduous Coniferous Shrubs Vines Flowers Grasses and other ground covers References Used An Introduction Soluble salts can cause harm to plants if they are in high enough concentration in water or soil. This effect is mainly indirect by pulling moisture out of roots and reducing the uptake of water and nutrients to affected plants.
Some salts can be toxic to root tissue.
Tip and edge burn of leaves, slow growth, nutrient deficiencies, wilting and eventual death of the plant can occur if the salt level is excessive for the plant and the problem is not corrected. To avoid plant loss in salty sites, a soil test should be done to determine the soil salt level and plants selected based on their salt tolerance. Conductivity is defined as the ability of a solution to conduct an electrical current, or the reciprocal of the solution's ability to resist the current. This current is conducted by electrically charged particles called ions, which are present in almost all solultions. The greater the conductivity of the solution the higher the reading.