Cadmium uptake by tobacco as affected by liming, N form, and year of cultivation

• Published in: Environmental pollution (1987) 2005-03, Vol.134 (2), p.239-246
• Main Authors: Tsadilas, C.D., Karaivazoglou, N.A., Tsotsolis, N.C., Stamatiadis, S., Samaras, V.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Acid soils; Agriculture; Animal, plant and microbial ecology; Applied ecology; Biological and medical sciences; Biological Availability; cadmium; Cadmium - analysis; Cadmium - pharmacokinetics; Calcium Hydroxide; Ecotoxicology, biological effects of pollution; Environmental Exposure - adverse effects; Fertilizers; field experimentation; Flue-cured tobacco; foliar uptake; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; General aspects; Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; hyperaccumulators; liming; N fertilizers; Nicotiana - metabolism; Nitrogen; nitrogen fertilizers; Plant Leaves - metabolism; polluted soils; Seasons; Soil - analysis; Soil Cd; Soil pH; Soil Pollutants - analysis; Soil Pollutants - pharmacokinetics; soil pollution; Time Factors; tobacco; uptake mechanisms
• ISSN: 0269-7491; 1873-6424
• DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2004.08.008

Tobacco is able to accumulate cadmium and reduction of cadmium content can reduce health hazards to smokers. Soil pH and form of N fertilizers are among the factors affecting Cd uptake by tobacco. This hypothesis was tested in an acid soil in northern Greece by a four year field experiment. The variability of Cd uptake by tobacco was attributed to the variation of soil Cd availability as affected by soil pH. Liming with 3000 kg Ca(OH) 2 ha −1 increased soil pH by 0.8 units and decreased extractable with DTPA soil and leaf Cd by 40% and 35%, respectively. The ammonium fertilizer caused the opposite, but weaker, effects. Liming reduced soil Cd more in the ammonium treatment than in nitrate or combined N treatments. The year of cultivation strongly affected soil and leaf Cd. Four years after tobacco cultivation, soil pH was reduced by 0.5 units, whereas soil and leaf Cd reduction was more than 60% in the limed treatments. Liming affected Cd uptake only in the first three years of cultivation. Liming and N form affect Cd uptake by Virginia tobacco which contributes significantly to the great reduction of extractable soil Cd after three years of continuous cultivation.