Abstract

This study investigated effect of soil textures and cadmium (Cd) concentrations on the growth, fibre yields and Cd absorption of kenaf. Screen-house experiment was conducted in the University of Agriculture, Abeokuta (UNAAB), Ogun State, Nigeria. Top soils were collected from Murtala Victoria Botanical Garden, Epe, Lagos State, Nigeria and UNAAB Teaching and Research Farm. Ten-litre plastic pots were filled with 10kg soil. Experimental design was a 2 × 5 factorial in RCBD replicated three times. Two soil textures and five levels of Cd concentration (as Cadmium nitrate): 0, 1.5, 3.0, 4.5 and 6.0 mgCd/kg soil. Growth and yield parameters were collected. Cd content of plants and soils were determined using AAS and analyzed using descriptive statistics, ANOVA and correlation. UNAAB soil had pH of 6.3 with sandy loam texture while Epe soil had pH and texture of 5.3 and sand respectively. Control had significantly (P<0.05) higher plant height, stem girth, bast and core yields while 6.0 mg/kg had the least in the two soils. The more the concentration of Cd applied, the higher was the absorption by kenaf in the two soils. Kenaf planted in Epe soil had better absorption than UNAAB soil. There was significant (p < 0.01) positive correlation between Cd applied and Cd absorbed by kenaf.

Key words: Phytoremediation by kenaf, soil textures, cadmium concentrations