Effect of different levels of phosphorus fertilizer on heavy metals concentration in corn (Zea mays)‎ cultivated in oil polluted soil

Abstract EN

A pot experiment was conducted at the experimental farm of the Agriculture College, Salahaddin University of - Erbil, at Grdarasha field in silty clay loam (south of Erbil city) (36° 07' N, 44° 00' E), 411m above the sea level, during summer growing season of year 2016, to study the effect of five levels of phosphorus fertilizer (0, 20, 40, 60 and 80 kg ha-1) on heavy metals concentration in corn plants growing in polluted and non polluted.

The results revealed that the oil contaminated soil affects the growth performance of corn as percent germination.

As well as showed that spent oil in soil has highly significant ( p ≤ 0.05) effects on some soil physico - chemical properties including pH, EC, Ca, Carbon and heavy metals concentrations.

The spent oil also significantly reduced (p ≤ 0.05) the germination percentage; the seeds observed in the control pots had normal growth, where as in the polluted soils with oil the seeds had no germination, the plants had stunted growth.

Therefore contamination of agriculture soils with oil should be avoided and public awareness should be created on the detrimental effects of oil pollution in our terrestrial ecosystem.