Increased soil heavy metal concentrations are suggested to cause roots to work harder. This research was to study the growth and phytoextraction behaviors of elephant grass in soil amended with industrial waste. Soil samples were obtained from an experimental field treated with a heavy metal containing waste at 0, 15 and 60 Mg ha-1, CaCO3 at 0 and 5 Mg ha-1, and compost at 0 and 5 Mg ha-1. Soil samples were planted with elephant grass, 8 weeks after which the soil samples were analyzed for Cu and Zn. Plant roots and shoots were harvested and weighed for their dry-masses and analyzed for Cu and Zn. The results demonstrate that the Root/Shoot increased and show good correlations with the increase in soil Cu or Zn. The plant Cu or Zn increased with the increase in soil Cu or Zn but decreased with liming. Plant Cu and Zn in roots and the whole plants as well as their TFs were well correlated with soil Cu and Zn. These observations confirm that the root/shoot growth and Cu and Zn absorption by elephant grass are governed by soil Cu and Zn and elephant grass is a Cu and Zn phytoextractor.
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