Phytoremediation of Copper and Arsenic Contaminated Soil Using Gladiolus (Gladiolus grandifloras) and Chrysanthemum (Chrysanthemum morifolium) Plants
Noman Amjad
Department of Horticulture, Muhammad Nawaz Shareef University of Agriculture, Multan, Pakistan.
Isbah Akhtar
Department of Horticulture, Bahauddin Zakariya University Multan, Pakistan.
Amir Hameed
Department of Horticulture, Muhammad Nawaz Shareef University of Agriculture, Multan, Pakistan.
Faizan Ahmad
Department of Botany, Islamia University Bahawalpur, Rahim Yar Khan Campus, Pakistan.
Farhan Ali
University of Molise, Italy.
Muhammad Ahmad
Department of Plant Pathology, Bahauddin Zakariya University. Multan, Pakistan.
Imran Ullah
Department of Horticulture, Muhammad Nawaz Shareef University of Agriculture, Multan, Pakistan.
Umbreen Bibi
Department of Botany, Government College University, Faisalabad, Pakistan.
Nida Altaf
Department of Botany, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad, Pakistan.
Sanaullah *
Institute of Plant Protection, Muhammad Nawaz Shareef University of Agriculture Multan, Pakistan.
Umer Iqbal Ahmad
Department of Soil Science, Islamia University, Bahawalpur, Pakistan.
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
Heavy metal toxicity in the soil causes harmful effects on plants as well as on human health. They are introduced into the soil by different means like smelting, burning of coal, and excess use of fertilizers, sewage sludge, and pesticides. Among different heavy metals Copper and arsenic are very important but their higher concentrations cause several morphological and biochemical in plants. They become part of the food chain when fruits and vegetables are grown in contaminated soil and can cause serious health issues to consumers. On the other hand, ornamental plants are used for aesthetic beautification and could be explored for the phytoremediation of soil heavy metals. A recent study was conducted to observe the phytoremediation potential of Gladiolus (Gladiolus grandifloras) and chrysanthemum against different levels of Copper (80 and100µg/kg of soil) and arsenic (80 and 100 µg/kg) in the soil under completely randomized design. Data of accumulated quantity of heavy metals were noted after the flowering stage of both plants by dividing into four parts including roots, stem, leaves, and flowers. Both Gladiolus and chrysanthemum accumulated significant amounts of Cu and As in roots, stem, leaves, and flower. Gladiolus and chrysanthemum accumulated 367, 456, 796 and 1278ppm Co and 356, 571, 832 and 1478ppm As respectively. Chrysanthemums took up significant amounts of Cu in the stem and easily translocated from stem flowers. The translocation ability of chrysanthemum was higher for both metals compared to Gladiolus. The data were analyzed by mini tab statistics 8.1.
Keywords: Heavy metals, soil contamination, phytoremediation, ornamental plants