Assessment of the Bioavailability of Cu, Pb, and Zn through Petunia axillaris in Contaminated Soils

Heavy metals are potentially toxic to human life and the environment. Metal toxicity depends on chemical associations in soils. For this reason, determining the chemical form of a metal in soils is important to evaluate its mobility and the potential accumulation. The aim of this examination is to evaluate the accumulation potential of Petunia x hybrida as a flower crop for three metals, namely, copper (Cu), lead (Pb), and nickel (Ni). Trace metals (Zn, Cu, and Pb) in the soils were partitioned by a sequential extraction procedure into H2O extractable (F1), 1 M CH3COONa extractable (F2). Chemical fractionation showed that F1 and F2 fraction of the metals were near 1% and residue was the dominant form for Zn, Cu, and Pb in all samples. Using fluorescence method allowed us to estimate condition of the plants by adding metals. As result of plant and soil analysis, we can conclude that Petunia has Cu, Zn, and Ni tolerance and accumulation. Therefore, Petunia has the potential to serve as a model species for developing herbaceous, ornamental plants for phytoremediation.