Taking 1-year old Morus alba variety 'Qinglong' seedlings as test materials, this paper studied their growth and photosynthetic characteristics under the stresses of different concentration neutral salt NaCl and alkali salt Na2CO3. Salt stresses decreased the plant height and the leaf number, biomass, and photosynthetic capacity of the seedlings markedly. With increasing concentration Na+, the leaf stomatal conductance, transpiration rate, net photosynthetic rate, actual photochemical efficiency, electron transport rate, and photochemical quenching (qP) decreased obviously, the energy dissipation rate increased, and the light use efficiency and photosynthetic capacity dropped down. At low concentrations Na+ (< 150 mmol x L(-1)), the seedlings growth and leaf photosynthetic capacity were slightly inhibited, and the adaptability of the seedlings to the salt stresses increased via the increase of root/shoot ratio. However, this protection mechanism was impaired by increasing salt concentration. Na2CO3 stress (Na+ concentration > 50 mmol x L(-)) had stronger inhibitory effects on the seedlings growth and leaf photosynthetic capacity, and the effect increased with increasing Na+ concentration. It was concluded that at Na+ concentration < 150 mmol x L(-1), the photosynthetic adaptability of M. alba to neutral salt stress was mainly dependent on the plant morphology and photosynthetic metabolism, but at Na+ concentration > 150 mmol x L(-1), the photosynthetic adaptability of M. alba to alkali salt stress was mainly dependent on the photosynthetic metabolism.