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Growth, gas exchange, root morphology and cadmium uptake responses of poplars and willows grown on cadmium-contaminated soil to elevated CO2

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Abstract

Little information is available about effects of elevated CO2 (EC) on growth of poplars and willows grown on Cd-contaminated soil and their potential use for Cd phytoremediation. Plant growth, gas exchange, root morphology, and Cd uptake responses to EC were assessed for one poplar genotype [Populus euramericana cv. ‘74/76’ (P107)] and two willow genotypes [Salix jiangsuensis CL. ‘799’ (J799) and Salix jiangsuensis CL. ‘172’ (J172)]. Rooted cuttings were grown on Cd-contaminated soil in six open-top chambers supplied with ambient and elevated CO2. EC increased leaf, stem, root and total biomass and total Cd uptake, but did not change Cd concentration in the tree tissues. Although stomatal conductance declined remarkably, EC stimulated leaf photosynthesis and intrinsic water use efficiency. There were differences among tree genotypes in growth and photosynthesis response to EC, with photosynthetic acclimation occurring only in P107. EC increased root lengths, root surface areas, root volumes and numbers of root tips of the three tree genotypes grown on Cd-contaminated soils. It was concluded that the biomass increase was closely correlated with stimulation of leaf photosynthesis and root growth induced by EC. EC increased the root surface areas of small-diameter roots and consequently, the ability to capture Cd in root systems, which led to increased total Cd uptake in all plant parts. The increase in total Cd uptake by the tree genotypes due to increased biomass under EC suggested an alternative way of improving the efficiency of phytoremediation of contaminated soil.

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Acknowledgments

The work was financially supported jointly by both the National Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 40803039) and Central Public Research Institutes Basic Funds for Research and Development (Agro-Environment Protection Institute, Ministry of Agriculture). We would like to thank Mr Shizheng Shi from Jiangsu Academy of Forestry for providing us with experimental willow cuttings.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Research in Ecotoxicology and Environmental Remediation, Agro-Environmental Protection Institute, Ministry of Agriculture, Tianjin, 300191, People’s Republic of China

    Ruigang Wang, Shirong Tang, Shuai Tian, Zhengguo Song, Xiaofang Deng, Yongzhen Ding, Xiaojin Zou & Yujie Zhao

  2. Open Key Laboratory of Agro-environment and Food Safety of the Ministry of Agriculture, Tianjin, 300191, People’s Republic of China

    Ruigang Wang, Shirong Tang, Shuai Tian, Zhengguo Song, Xiaofang Deng, Yongzhen Ding, Xiaojin Zou & Yujie Zhao

  3. Tianjin Landscape-gardening Institute, Tianjin, 300181, People’s Republic of China

    Songxiang Dai

  4. Plant Science Department, McGill University, Macdonald Campus, 21111 Lakeshore Road, Ste. Anne de Bellevue, Quebec, H9X 3V9, Canada

    Donald L. Smith

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  1. Ruigang Wang
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  2. Songxiang Dai
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  3. Shirong Tang
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Correspondence to Shirong Tang.

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Wang, R., Dai, S., Tang, S. et al. Growth, gas exchange, root morphology and cadmium uptake responses of poplars and willows grown on cadmium-contaminated soil to elevated CO2 . Environ Earth Sci 67, 1–13 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-011-1475-0

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