Employing indigenous flora for the phytoremediation of agricultural soil contaminated by cadmium.

Abstract

Elevated concentrations of the heavy metal cadmium (Cd) in the soil might adversely affect the health of both 
the soil and vegetation. The objective of this descriptive study was to examine the ability of certain local plants to stabilize 
cadmium. A farming production site located in Batu City, East Java, Indonesia, was used for the research. This study was 
segmented into two stages: (1) an examination of nutrient and heavy metal contamination, and (2) a phytoremediation trial 
using five distinct species of indigenous flora. Three iterations of the experiment were conducted with a completely 
randomized design (CRD). Subsequent to the harvesting of the plants, an analysis was conducted on the concentration of 
heavy metals remaining in the soil and taken up by the plants. Atomic Absorption Spectrometry (AAS) was used for the 
determination of heavy metal concentration. Before phytoremediation, the initial concentration of heavy metal cadmium in 
the soil surpassed the limit of 2.26 mg kg-1. Notably, during the fourth week post-planting, the five indigenous plants 
assessed in the contaminated soil exhibited robust development. This specific plant had an average efficacy of 71.2% in 
reducing the heavy element cadmium. Vetiveria zizanioides (71.2%), Eleusine indica, L. (58.9%), Ageratum conyzoides L. 
(52.2%), Euphorbia hirta (51.8%), and Chromolaena odorata (22.1%) were the species that mitigated the heavy metal 
cadmium.