Effect of earthworms on the phytoremediation of zinc-polluted soil by ryegrass and Indian mustard

In this paper, the effects of earthworms on the growth and Zn uptake of ryegrass and Indian mustard in artificially Zn-contaminated soils were studied. Earthworm inoculation increased plant shoot biomass by 29–83% for ryegrass and by 11–42% for Indian mustard, respectively, as compared to the treatments without earthworms, while the roots’ biomass of both plants were increased much more than their corresponding shoots. Earthworms also increased shoot Zn concentrations in both ryegrass and Indian mustard, although the increases in ryegrass did not show significant difference. Except for soil without Zn contamination, the Zn contents of both ryegrass and Indian mustard roots were significantly increased by earthworm addition. Generally, Zn contents of roots were relatively higher than those of shoots for both plants, which were independent of earthworms inoculation. Earthworm increased soil bioavailable metal (diethylenetriamine-pentaacetic acid–Zn) (DTPA-Zn) concentrations, which resulted in a direct increase in Zn uptake by the plants, since a significant correlation was observed between the DTPA–Zn contents and plant Zn uptake. However, the main reason for the increase in plant Zn uptake under earthworm inoculation was probably the increase in dry matter production stimulated by earthworms.