The effect of fertilizing soils degraded by the metallurgical industry on the content of elements in Lactuca sativa L.

Alicja Kicińska,Justyna Wikar

doi:10.1038/s41598-021-83600-7

Abstract

The aim of the study was to determine the content of macroelements (Ca, K, P, S, Mg) and microelements (Fe, Cr, Ni, Mn, Zn, Pb, Zn, Ti) in the leaves of Lactuca sativa grown in soils contaminated by the mining and metallurgical industry. The plants were cultivated using four fertilization variants: (a) unfertilized soil, (b) mix of straight fertilizers, (c) multinutrient fertilizer and (d) organic fertilizer, namely granular cattle manure. The study also involved an analysis of metal accumulation degree in the edible parts of lettuce by means of calculating a bioaccumulation index—transfer factor (TF). The analysis of the impact of fertilization on the content of the elements in the edible parts of fertilized versus unfertilized lettuce demonstrated that phytoavailability of the metals was most effectively limited by the multinutrient fertilizer and the mix of straight fertilizers. The organic fertilizer proved to be the least effective. The highest TF values (> 0.1) were recorded for macroelements, which denotes their intense and moderate accumulation. Poor bioaccumulation was observed for Cr, Mn, Ni and Zn (0.01 ≤ TF < 0.1), whereas in the case of Fe, Pb and Ti—trace bioaccumulation or no bioaccumulation was found (TF ≤ 0.01).

Highlights

The aim of the study was to determine the content of macroelements (Ca, K, P, S, Mg) and microelements (Fe, Cr, Ni, Mn, Zn, Pb, Zn, Ti) in the leaves of Lactuca sativa grown in soils contaminated by the mining and metallurgical industry
Plants are an important source of vitamins, minerals and fibre. They can be a significant source of toxic substances, i.e. nitrates, heavy metals and metalloids, which can be accumulated in their edible parts in amounts that pose a threat to human health and even life[2,3,4,5,6,7]
The highest content of Cr, Ni, Pb and Zn, amounting to: 1.0, 0.5, 0.8 and 37.3, respectively was found in plants grown in the soils from Bukowno, while lettuce grown in the soils collected in Nowa Huta presented the highest content of Fe, Mn and Ti: 43.7, 7.6 and 13.2, respectively

Summary

Introduction

The aim of the study was to determine the content of macroelements (Ca, K, P, S, Mg) and microelements (Fe, Cr, Ni, Mn, Zn, Pb, Zn, Ti) in the leaves of Lactuca sativa grown in soils contaminated by the mining and metallurgical industry. In the case of crops, leafy vegetables such as lettuce, spinach or parsley have the highest potential to accumulate excessive amounts of metals They can absorb heavy metals from the soil, and through the foliar route, through atmospheric dust fall containing a high pollutant load[18,19,20]. SO 50o18'31.3"N 19o11'47.5"E B-I 50o16'00.8"N 19o27'16.1"E B-II 50o16'16.2"N 19o29'04.4"E NH 50o04'11.0"N 20o03'34.7"E CŁ 50o04'47.6"N 20o11'17.4"E SŁ 49o41'48.7"N 20o18'49.7"E of particular types of vegetables, attention should be paid to the degree of soil contamination and to the presence of minerals, especially those fertilizer-derived[9,22,23], as they are relatively absorbed by the root system Being unselective, it is the cell wall of the roots that is responsible for the uptake and accumulation of metal ions[24,25]. The transfer of metals from the soil to the plant is considered to decrease as metal bioavailability d ecreases[29,30,31]

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Conclusion