PHYTOREMEDIATION OF A Pb-POLLUTED SOIL USING MUSTARD PLANT SPECIES

Abdel-Hamid, Maher A.; Abouzied, Mostafa M.A.; Abu-Sinna, Mohamed A.; Abd El-Azziz, Gehan H.

doi:10.21608/fjard.2011.195027

PHYTOREMEDIATION OF A Pb-POLLUTED SOIL USING MUSTARD PLANT SPECIES

Document Type : Research articles.

Authors

¹ Soil Sci. Dept., Fac. of Agric., Cairo University, Giza, Egypt

² Soils, Water and Environ. Res. Inst., (SWERI) Agric. Res. Center, Giza, Egypt

10.21608/fjard.2011.195027

Abstract

A greenhouse pot experiment was conducted to clarify the ability
of both White mustard (Sinapis alba L.) and Indian mustard (Brassica
juncos L.) as a phytoremediation for a polluted Pb-soil. Plants were
grown on a soil treated with Pb at rates 154, 450, 750, and 950 mg kg-1
soil. Soil pots were daily irrigated with tap water. The plants
allowed to growing for four months. One week before harvest,
ethylene-diamine-tetraacetic acid (EDTA) as a chelated agent was
applied at a rate of 0.5 g kg-1 soil for 50 % of the experimental pots.
Either EDTA-treated or untreated plants were harvested 127 days after
planting.
The obtained results showed that white mustard and Indian
mustard plants grown in Pb contaminated soil can tolerate and
accumulate significant amounts of lead (Pb) in their roots and shoots.
The results suggest that adding EDTA can promote the bioavailability
of Pb in the soil and increase the propensity for Pb-uptake by plants
into roots and shoots. It could be concluded that White mustard and
Indian mustard can be grown under elevated Pb conditions due to their
suitability as a potential crop species for phytoremediation of polluted
soils with heavy metals.

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