Gladkov Yevgeny Aleksandrovich
Abstract
Heavy metals are priority pollutants of soil of cities, for example in Moscow the priority pollutants are zinc, lead and copper. The purpose of this study was to assess phytotoxicity of zinc on urban plants. The average zinc content in Moscow is 118 mg/kg, but the official data on soil pollution in Moscow are controversial due to mosaic of soils. In some areas there is an excess 1.04-3.1 times of approximate permissible concentration, which is 220 mg/kg. Zinc has an adverse effect even at relatively low concentrations on plants. Plants preserved decorative qualities when zinc concentrations in soil were less than 100 mg/kg, growth inhibition was 20-30 %, depending on the plant species. Thus, zinc is the limiting factor for many ornamental plants, concentrations below about approximate permissible concentration.