Articles
Farming practice influences non-essential metal and metalloid concentrations in grapevine in selected vineyards of the Cape Winelands, South Africa
Article number
1418_11
Pages
85 – 94
Language
English
Abstract
The increasing contamination of soils and plants by non-essential metals and metalloids is extremely concerning.
Conventional farming practices have accelerated the release of these elements from natural sources, and subsequent plant uptake and bioaccumulation increase the risk of adverse effects on plants, animals, and human health.
Soils and grapevine (Vitis vinifera) leaves were sampled from selected organically and conventionally farmed vineyards in the Cape Winelands from four demarcated areas in each farm during winter and summer and analyzed using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) techniques.
The concentrations of aluminum (Al), antimony (Sb), barium (Ba), silicon (Si), vanadium (V), tin (Sn), and strontium (Sr) were determined and analyzed using a one-way ANOVA. Besides Sr and Sb levels in one organic farm (Farm D) and one conventional farm (Farm E), generally, seasons had no significant (degree of freedom (DF) = 1, 6; P>0.05) effect on the concentrations of these elements in the soil.
Remarkably, agricultural practices significantly (DF=1, 22; P<0.05) affected leaf concentrations of five of the six heavy metals and one metalloid studied, with four metals (Sb, V, Al, and Sn) having higher concentrations in conventional than organic farms.
However, Ba was significantly higher (DF=1, 22; F=10.74; P<0.01) in organic farms (39.384±7.395 mg kg-1) than in conventional farms (20.332±2.623 mg kg-1). Generally, seasonal change did not significantly influence the level of most heavy metals in the vineyards’ soil.
This study demonstrated that organic farming could mitigate the uptake of heavy metals by grapevine plants.
Conventional farming practices have accelerated the release of these elements from natural sources, and subsequent plant uptake and bioaccumulation increase the risk of adverse effects on plants, animals, and human health.
Soils and grapevine (Vitis vinifera) leaves were sampled from selected organically and conventionally farmed vineyards in the Cape Winelands from four demarcated areas in each farm during winter and summer and analyzed using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) techniques.
The concentrations of aluminum (Al), antimony (Sb), barium (Ba), silicon (Si), vanadium (V), tin (Sn), and strontium (Sr) were determined and analyzed using a one-way ANOVA. Besides Sr and Sb levels in one organic farm (Farm D) and one conventional farm (Farm E), generally, seasons had no significant (degree of freedom (DF) = 1, 6; P>0.05) effect on the concentrations of these elements in the soil.
Remarkably, agricultural practices significantly (DF=1, 22; P<0.05) affected leaf concentrations of five of the six heavy metals and one metalloid studied, with four metals (Sb, V, Al, and Sn) having higher concentrations in conventional than organic farms.
However, Ba was significantly higher (DF=1, 22; F=10.74; P<0.01) in organic farms (39.384±7.395 mg kg-1) than in conventional farms (20.332±2.623 mg kg-1). Generally, seasonal change did not significantly influence the level of most heavy metals in the vineyards’ soil.
This study demonstrated that organic farming could mitigate the uptake of heavy metals by grapevine plants.
Publication
Authors
F. Nchu, A. Mahlungulu, M. Tanga, E.A. Akinpelu, L. Kambizi
Keywords
organic grapevine, conventional farming, heavy metal contamination, season, plant health
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