Cadmium uptake by Carpobrotus rossii (Haw.) Schwantes under different saline conditions

© 2016, Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg. Plants used for phytoextraction of heavy metals from contaminated soils with high levels of salinity should be able to accumulate heavy metals and also be tolerant to salinity. Australian native halophyte species Carpobrotus rossii has recently been shown to tolerate and accumulate multiple heavy metals, especially cadmium (Cd). This study examined the effects of salt type and concentration on phytoextraction of Cd in C. rossii. Plants were grown in contaminated soil for 63 days. The addition of salts increased plant growth and enhanced the accumulation of Cd in shoots up to 162 mg kg−1 which almost doubled the Cd concentration (87 mg kg−1) in plants without salt addition. The increased Cd accumulation was ascribed mainly to increased ionic strength in soils due to the addition of salts and resultantly increased the mobility of Cd. In comparison, the addition of Cl− resulted in 8–60 % increase in Cd accumulation in shoots than the addition of SO42− and NO3−. The findings suggest that C. rossii is a promising candidate in phytoextraction of Cd-polluted soils with high salinity levels.