Heavy metal contents in Veronica species and soil from mountainous areas in Serbia

This paper describes the relationships between the concentrations of selected trace elements in soil and their bioaccumulation in the aerial parts of three Veronica species (Plantaginaccae). Plant and soil samples were collected from three mountainous areas in Serbia, prepared by microwave-assisted acid digestion and analyzed by flame and flameless atomic absorption spectrometry. The total concentrations of Cu, Zn, Mn, Fe and Cr in the soil varied from 12.38 to 47.77, 62.78 to 138.00, 517.58 to 1675.78, 13574.22 to 35920.00 and 36.18 to 115.15 mg kg(-1), respectively, while those in the plants ranged from 6.04 to 12.8, 27.66 to 58.01, 25.38 to 89.25, 35.53 to 563.26 and 0.44 to 18.96 mg kg(-1), respectively. There were no significant differences in heavy metal concentrations between the tested Veronica species from the same location, indicating that their heavy metal uptake pattern was not species specific. In the case of Mn, despite its wide variation in the soil, the concentrations in the plant samples were uniform, which suggests the potential ability of the tested species to control Mn uptake and/or its translocation to the upper plant parts. Additionally, the lowest concentrations of Cu were obtained in plant samples collected from soil with the highest Fe concentrations, indicating that Cu availability to plants might be reduced due to high Fe contents in soil solution.