Abstract:In south of China,aluminum stress is a barrier factor for alfalfa planting in acid soils,inhibition of root growth is a typical symptom of plants under aluminum stress.It is of great economic significance to study the aluminum toxicity of plant roots for the cultivation of alfalfa in southern China.In this study,two kinds of alfalfa (Medicago sativa) (Deqin and Eureka) in acidic soil was studied under aluminum stress.The effects of different AL3+ concentrations (0,50,100,200,and 500 mol/L) on root length,plant height,biomass,root activity,SOD,and POD of alfalfa were analyzed.After the roots of alfalfa were stained with hematoxylin,the color of alfalfa roots deepened with the increase of Al3+ concentration.The results showed that the different concentrations of aluminum significantly inhibited the root and plant height growth of the two alfalfa species.Compared with the control,the root length,plant height,aboveground biomass,and underground biomass of alfalfa decreased significantly with the increase of Al3+ concentration,and there were significant differences between different varieties.Under the relatively low concentration of aluminum stress (≤200 mol/L),the inhibition rate of root length in Eureka was less than that of Deqin,while the inhibition rate of root length in Eureka was greater than that of Deqin when aluminum stress reached at high level.With the increase of the concentration of aluminum,the activity of root system,POD,and SOD decreased,the content of malondialdehyde increased,and the difference between different varieties was significant.In conclusion,under different acidic soil conditions,a local variety alfalfa Deqin and a popularized variety Eureka showed different aluminum tolerance.