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Bioresource Technology 99 (2008) 2537–2543

Zinc and copper uptake by silver beet grown in secondary

treated effluent
Jaya Nair *, Jason Levitan, Noraisha Oyama
Environmental Technology Centre, Murdoch University, Perth, WA 6150, Australia

Received 26 February 2007; received in revised form 23 April 2007; accepted 23 April 2007
Available online 13 June 2007

Abstract

The study was conducted in a hydroponics set-up to determine the suitability of zinc (Zn) and copper (Cu) contaminated wastewater
as a growth medium for edible crops; to identify accumulation of Zn and Cu in different parts of the plants and to understand their effects
on plant growth. Silver beet was found to produce adequate yields in the Zn (1.7 mg/L and 2.0 mg/L) and Cu (0.35 mg/L and 1.1 mg/L)
spiked medium but not in the secondary treated domestic effluent. The plants grown in secondary treated effluent showed stunted growth
and accumulated Zn and Cu to a high level in their shoots. In all other mediums Zn and Cu accumulated more in the roots. The stunted
growth of silver beet in secondary treated wastewater and uptake of Zn in particular was considered to be due to the deficiency of nitro-
gen and other plant nutrients rather than the effect of heavy metals. The study also revealed that if there was adequate amount of
macronutrients available for growth, silver beet could be grown in domestic effluent without the risk of Zn or Cu contamination to
the undesired level through hydroponics.
Crown Copyright  2007 Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Wastewater reuse; Heavy metals; Silver beet; Copper; Zinc

1. Introduction growing crops in farms at Paris and Berlin (Leeper,

Cropping with sewage is a practice that has been around
for centuries as efficient nutrient recycling systems (Vaz-
quez-Montiel et al., 1996). Wastewater reuse, although
becoming a necessity due to the limitations in the availabil-
ity of freshwater for irrigation, has a health risk as, specific
wastewater constituents may be of concern depending on
the reuse objective (Asano et al., 1985). However, the prac-
tice of wastewater reuse is becoming accepted in agriculture
(Dimitriadis, 2005). The main concerns are the risk of
pathogens, heavy metals and other chemicals that may be
present in the wastewater getting transferred through the
food chain if used for growing edible crops. Poor growth
and chlorosis in vegetables were also reported due to the
presence of excess Cu and Zn in the wastewater used for
1978). Oyama et al. (2006) suggested that if plants are
grown in a hydroponics set-up when using wastewater as
a medium, the risk of pathogen transfer could be mini-
mised. Epstein (2003) remarked that for the heavy metals
to be taken by plants it should be in the soil solution, which
may occur during wastewater irrigation, although part of it
gets bound in the organic matter of the soil. This study par-
ticularly looked at the impact of various levels of Cu and
Zn on the growth of silver beet and accumulation in the
edible parts of the plant when using heavy metal contami-
nated water in a hydroponics system. The study also eval-
uated whether the secondary treated WW by itself is
sufficient for plant growth and whether the heavy metal
content in the effluent will be a concern for its use.
The research objectives of this experiment were to:

*
Corresponding author. Tel.: +61 8 9360 7322; fax: +61 8 9310 4997. • determine the suitability of utilising heavy metal con-
E-mail address: j.nair@murdoch.edu.au (J. Nair). taminated water for irrigation;

0960-8524/$ - see front matter Crown Copyright  2007 Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.biortech.2007.04.043
2538 J. Nair et al. / Bioresource Technology 99 (2008) 2537–2543
• identify the points of Cu and Zn accumulation within
the plants;
• understand the effect of Cu and Zn on plant growth.
2. Methods
2.1. Experimental set-up
Experiments were conducted in hydroponic channels
using nutrient film technique with the liquid medium recir-
culated from 40 L storage containers using pumps. Seed-
lings of silver beet of the same size were planted in
standard plant pots with clay beads to support the plants
inserted into the channels allowing the roots to grow into
the nutrient film in the channels.
The control medium (CM) used was a commercial
hydroponics medium (Ag Grow) diluted to the recom-
mended level for vegetables. For spiking, different concen-
trations of Cu and Zn were prepared using copper sulphate
and zinc sulphate dissolved in the commercial hydroponics
medium. The concentrations were selected at higher levels
than the recommended maximum for reuse purpose
(ACT Wasterwater Reuse for Irrigation, 1999; Ayers and
Westcot, 1985; Pettygrove and Asano, 1985; WHO, 1996)
to study the impacts on plants. The concentrations tested
were 0.35 mg/L and 1.1 mg/L of copper and 1.7 mg/L
and 2.0 mg/L of zinc. Secondary treated wastewater
(WW) collected from the wastewater treatment plant was
also used for comparison. The medium in the containers
was completely changed every fortnight to prevent nutrient
deficiencies in plants. The experiment was conducted for a
period of 12 weeks.
2.2. Sampling and monitoring
Visual analysis and observations were conducted
throughout the experiment for discolouration and general
health of the plant. Height measurements of the plants
were taken to assess growth. The media was sampled fort-
nightly to determine the pH, dissolved oxygen, electrical
conductivity, total and dissolved levels of Cu and Zn using
pH meter, dissolved oxygen meter, conductivity meter and
ICP, respectively. At the end of the trial, the plants were
harvested and the height and weight of roots and shoots
were separately measured. The Cu and Zn levels in roots
and shoots were also tested using ICP.
Data was statistically analysed using an analysis of var-
iance test (ANOVA) using SPSS 12.01 to find out if there
was a significant impact on accumulation within the plants
with the concentration of heavy metals in the medium.
Table 1
Water quality of the secondary treated wastewater and the commercial medium
Total phosphorus (mg/L) Nitrate nitrogen (mg/L)
Commercial medium 28.5 115.75
Wastewater 6.82 2.29
3. Results and discussion
3.1. Water quality
The nutrient quality of WW and of CM which was used
as the control is given in Table 1. The secondary treated
WW had significantly low amount of total nitrogen,
nitrate nitrogen and total phosphorus than the ideal con-
centration in the prepared commercial hydroponics med-
ium (CM).
The pH of the WW medium ranged between 6.5 and 7.5
(Table 2). The pH levels during the early stages of plant
growth were between 7.0 and 7.4 which dropped to 6.6 dur-
ing the final stage. Similarly the pH of CM also dropped to
6.5 in the final stages of growth from 7 to 7.8 during the
initial stages of growth. The pH range of Cu spiked media
did not differ much (6.9–7.6 for 0.35 mg/L Cu and 6.5–
7.6 mg/L for 1.1 mg/L Cu). But the drop in pH for Zn
spiked mediums was more drastic during the final stages
of growth which dropped to 6.1 (Table 2). According to
the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia (1999),
the pH should be between 6 and 7 and in this study all
mediums remained between 6 and 8. CAST (1980)
observed that the heavy metals become available to plant
at a pH below 6.5. Low pH seemed to have a greater effect
on Zn up take by plants (Anderson and Christensen, 1988).
Since the pH became more acidic during the final stages of
growth in the present study, the chances of uptake should
be more during that stage.
All systems maintained a high level of DO ranging
between 9 mg/L and 14 mg/L throughout the growth per-
iod (Table 2) which is more than adequate for crop produc-
tion, the minimum required being 0.5 mg/L (Angelakis
et al., 1999). Continuous aeration of the media during
recirculation would have increased the DO levels.
The electrical conductivity (EC) of the CM (1–1.8 mS)
was higher than WW (0.3–0.6 mS) throughout the experi-
ment. During the last fortnight of growth there was a drop
in EC in both mediums (Table 2). In Cu and Zn spiked
media a relatively higher EC levels was observed ranging
between 1 and 2 mS. During the initial stages of the growth
the EC level was high ranging between 1.6 and 2 mS before
dropping drastically in all mediums to 1mS during the last
fortnight (Table 2). The Department of Agriculture (1997)
reported that silver beet can be productive in salinity levels
of 270–635 mS. These guidelines are considered to be
towards the upper limit of salinity levels that silver beet
plants could be productive in, and throughout the experi-
ment the highest EC reading noted was around 2.3 mS
and is not likely to affect the capacity of silver beet produc-
Total nitrogen (mg/L) Copper (mg/L) Zinc (mg/L)
125.4 0.05 0.05
43.75 0.08 0.09
 J. Nair et al. / Bioresource Technology 99 (2008) 2537–2543 2539

Table 2
The average pH, DO and EC of the WW, CM, Zn spiked and Cu spiked mediums (±standard error)
0 2 4 6 8 10 12
pH WW 6.91 ± 0 7.22 ± 0.03 7.28 ± 0.01 7.06 ± 0.04 7.43 ± 0.03 7.39 ± 0.03 6.67 ± 0.05
CM 6.76 ± 0 7.56 ± 0.02 7.16 ± 0.05 6.83 ± 0.03 6.99 ± 0.02 6.98 ± 0.01 6.52 ± 0.04
1.7 mg/L Zn 6.92 ± 0 7.45 ± 0.04 6.78 ± 0.07 6.57 ± 0.04 6.87 ± 0.03 6.90 ± 0.04 6.06 ± 0.02
2 mg/L Zn 6.76 ± 0 7.65 ± 0.07 7.06 ± 0.03 6.74 ± 0.34 6.87 ± 0.02 6.99 ± 0.03 6.12 ± 0.02
0.35 mg/L Cu 6.89 ± 0 7.58 ± 0.03 7.06 ± 0.01 6.94 ± 0.04 7.02 ± 0.04 7.03 ± 0.02 6.49 ± 0.04
1.1 mg/L Cu 6.93 ± 0 7.67 ± 0.05 7.26 ± 0.08 7.00 ± 0.03 6.9 ± 0.02 6.99 ± 0.03 6.42 ± 0.05
DO (mg/L) WW 9.18 ± 0 9.81 ± 0.05 11.75 ± 0.1 13.2 ± 0.16 10.85 ± 0.63 8.97 ± 0.72 9.28 ± 0.46
CM 10.27 ± 0 9.72 ± 0.04 11.75 ± 0.16 13.23 ± 0.18 10.49 ± 0.67 11.15 ± 0.1 9.96 ± 0.11
1.7 mg/L Zn 10.41 ± 0 9.41 ± 0.06 11.37 ± 0.03 13.01 ± 0.34 11.21 ± 9.44 11.89 ± 0.11 9.78 ± 0.05
2 mg/L Zn 10.21 ± 0 9.48 ± 0.15 11.67 ± 0.09 12.82 ± 0.26 9.44 ± 0.07 11.13 ± 0.2 10.14 ± 0.08
0.35 mg/L Cu 10.25 ± 0 9.71 ± 0.03 11.89 ± 0.05 12.53 ± 0.01 9.09 ± 0.04 11.31 ± 0.02 9.53 ± 0.04
1.1 mg/L Cu 10.18 ± 0 9.89 ± 0.03 11.4 ± 0.05 12.78 ± 0.31 10.98 ± 0.41 11.14 ± 0.17 9.73 ± 0.14
EC (mS) WW 0.71 ± 0 0.75 ± 0.01 0.74 ± 0.01 0.68 ± 0.02 0.63 ± 0.03 0.69 ± 0.03 0.27 ± 0.05
CM 2.15 ± 0 2.05 ± 0.03 1.91 ± 0.04 1.8 ± 0.02 1.78 ± 0.06 1.78 ± 0.04 1.1 ± 0.06
1.7 mg/L Zn 1.96 ± 0 1.78 ± 0.01 1.70 ± 0.03 1.86 ± 0.02 1.71 ± 0.04 1.65 ± 0.04 1 ± 0.02
2 mg/L Zn 2.19 ± 0 1.92 ± 0.01 1.76 ± 0.03 1.88 ± 0.02 1.8 ± 0.05 1.92 ± 0.02 1.17 ± 0.02
0.35 mg/L Cu 1.99 ± 0 2.05 ± 0.02 2 ± 0.04 1.89 ± 0.05 1.79 ± 0.05 1.88 ± 0.03 1.1 ± 0.07
1.1 mg/L Cu 1.93 ± 0 1.92 ± 0.03 1.81 ± 0.03 1.82 ± 0.02 1.6 ± 0.04 1.80 ± 0.1 1 ± 0.03

tion. The EC of the WW remained steady around 0.7 mS dissolved zinc concentration
16.00
shows that the EC of the treated domestic effluent would 14.00
not hinder the growth of silver beet if used in the hydro- 12.00
ponics set-up. 10.00
WW
(mg/L)

CM
8.00
1.7mg/L Zinc
6.00
2mg/L Zinc
3.2. Copper and zinc levels in the nutrient mediums 4.00
2.00
The levels of total copper and dissolved copper 0.00
remained steady in the medium throughout the experiment 0 2 4 6 8 10 12
with the exception of the levels in the 1.1 mg/L copper weeks
medium which increased drastically during the final fort- Fig. 2. The levels of dissolved zinc in the nutrient mediums.
night (Fig. 1). This could be because when the plants have
reached the maximum growth, the uptake of Cu might
have reduced. However, a different trend was noted for ble form of heavy metals in the hydroponics set-up with the
Zn, (Fig. 2). In CM, the concentration remained almost decrease in pH (Epstein, 2003) and uptake by plants.
steady throughout the growth period, while the concentra-
tion in the spiked media increased towards the end. In WW 3.3. Plant growth
the concentration decreased showing higher uptake by
plants. This unsteady levels could be due to the differential The shoot heights of silver beet were similar (40–50 cm)
level of uptake with the availability of nutrients from fresh in control and heavy metal spiked channels where the com-
media every fortnight and could be attributed to the solu- mercial medium was used. Those grown in WW the plants
reached only 30 cm in height (Fig. 3). The initial growth in
WW media was similar to the control however, as it pro-
dissolved copper concentration

1.80
gressed, the plants showed a stunted growth. The difference
1.60
in the shoot heights between the WW plants and the CM
1.40
plants was significant (p < 0.01). About 20% plants grown
1.20 WW
in WW started showing discolouration and stunted growth
(mg/L)

1.00 CM
0.80 0.35mg/L Copper from second fortnight onwards which increased to 50% by
0.60 1.1mg/L Copper the end of the experiment. The CM plants, the Zn and the
0.40 Cu spiked plants did not differ significantly in the shoot
0.20 heights (p > 0.3).
0.00 The length of the roots was maximum in the 1.1 mg/L
0 2 4 6 8 10 12
Cu spiked medium followed by 1.7 mg/L Zn spiked med-
weeks
ium (Fig. 4). The differences between the root lengths of
Fig. 1. The levels of dissolved copper in the nutrient mediums. the CM plants, the Zn spiked plants and the Cu spiked
2540 J. Nair et al. / Bioresource Technology 99 (2008) 2537–2543

60 (2002) found that root length and shoot biomass was neg-
50
atively related to copper concentration in Brassica pekinen-
WW sis (Chinese cabbage), however this study found a better
40 CM
centimetres

growth rate with spiking the CM with 1.1 mg/L Cu com-

1.7mg/L Zinc
30 pared to the control.
2mg/L Zinc
20 0.35mg/L Copper
1.1mg/L Copper 3.4. Heavy metal uptake
10

0 In wastewater reuse systems the concern on risk of

0 2 4 6 8 10 12 heavy metal accumulation is particularly high for the edible
weeks parts such as leaves, fruits or in case of root crops in roots
Fig. 3. Average heights of the plants in different nutrient medium. (Chunilall et al., 2004; Demirezen and Aksoy, 2004; Deng
et al., 2004; Gothberg et al., 2002; Qu et al., 2003). Zn
and Cu are essential for human diet and both elements
can also cause toxicity to human and plants if exceeded
Treatment (Epstein, 2003). In this study, the inedible part was also
1.7mg/L 0.35mg/L 1.1mg/L tested to assess the site of heavy metal accumulation in
WW CM Zinc 2mg/L Zinc Copper Copper
0
the plant although only accumulation in shoots is of con-
cern with silver beet. It was observed that zinc accumulated
10
more in the roots than in the shoots except in WW medium
20
centimetres

(Table 4). The WW mediums contained the highest levels

30
40
50
60
70
Fig. 4. The average root length of the plants of each nutrient medium.
plants was significant (p < 0.01) though the root lengths of
the WW and CM plants was not significant (p > 0.13). It
seemed that higher the concentration of heavy metals in
the medium, the roots grew longer and accumulated them
heavily.
The average wet weight of the shoots in the wastewater
mediums (426.67 g) was considerably lower than the other
nutrient mediums (Table 3). Maximum weight was
observed in 0.35 mg/L Cu spiked medium. Additional spik-
ing with Zn did not cause any improvement to the shoot
weight, rather an insignificant reduction compared to the
CM was observed. On average the WW grown plants con-
tained more moisture than in the CM. The weight of roots
did not differ between the WW and those of other medi-
ums. The difference in moisture content in the roots was
not as different as observed for the shoots. Xiong et al.
of zinc in the shoots at nearly 2000 mg/kg dry wt followed
by 2 mg/L spiked zinc medium at 1000 mg/kg, with 1.7 mg/
L spiked Zn medium at 600 mg/kg. The plants in the con-
trol medium only accumulated 400 mg/kg in the shoots.
These differences in accumulation were found to be signif-
icant (p < 0.01). The accumulation was highest in the roots
of plants grown on the highest level of zinc spiked medium
(2 mg/L).
Copper accumulated more in roots than in shoots in all
cases (Table 4). The level in shoots remained almost same
without a significant difference between the mediums irre-
spective of their concentration in the medium. However,
the level of copper in the roots increased with the concen-
tration in the medium with 240 mg/kg in the 1.1 mg/L
spiked medium followed by 0.35 mg/L spiked medium.
These differences were found to be significant (p < 0.03).
The shoots accumulated Zn above the excessive limit
suggested by Kabata-Pendias and Pendias (1984) and
WHO (1996) (Table 5). Only the concentration of Zn of
the CM plants was close to the maximum recommended
level of 400 mg/kg. Copper however did not accumulate
in shoots to excessive levels recommended by Kabata-Pen-
dias and Pendias (1984). These results concurred with the
observation of Utriainen’s (1999) where birch trees grown

Table 3
Average wet and dry weights and moisture content of the silver beet shoots
Sample Weight of shoots (g) Moisture content (%) Weight of roots (g) Moisture content (%)
Wet Dry Wet Dry
WW 426.67 ± 32 11.1 ± 2 97.4 226.67 ± 93 23.57 ± 5 89.6
CM 1320 ± 61 57.6 ± 13 95.64 360 ± 65 25.5 ± 9 92.92
Zn 1.7 mg/L 1313.33 ± 46 44.93 ± 16 96.58 320 ± 71 25.67 ± 11 91.98
Zn 2 mg/L 1236.67 ± 96 39.33 ± 12 96.82 240 ± 56 26.37 ± 8 89.01
Cu 0.35 mg/L 1673.33 ± 120 71.13 ± 9 95.75 356.67 ± 33 37.7 ± 12 89.43
Cu 1.1 mg/L 1450 ± 101 56.93 ± 11 96.07 313.33 ± 46 34.67 ± 7 88.94
 J. Nair et al. / Bioresource Technology 99 (2008) 2537–2543
Table 4
Copper and zinc accumulation (mg/kg dry wt ± SE) within the shoots and roots of the silver beet plants
Cu mg/kg dry wt ± SE WW
Shoots 17 ± 1
Roots 41.33 ± 3.02
Zinc mg/kg dry wt ± SE WW
Shoots 1966.67 ± 19.25
Roots 1433.33 ± 83.89
Table 5
Approximate concentrations of heavy metals in mature leaf tissue
Heavy Concentrations in mature leaf (dry weight) (Kabata-Pendias and
metals Pendias, 1984)
Deficient Sufficient Excessive
(mg/kg) (mg/kg) (mg/kg)
Zn 10–20 27–150 100–400
Cu 2–5 5–30 20–100
in hydroponics culture spiked with copper and zinc, accu-
mulated both heavy metals in roots, stems and leaves. In
this study zinc accumulation was more than 100 mg/kg
which when compared to other studies in Table 5, should
be considered toxic. Only the control medium and the
0.35 mg/L Cu spiked mediums accumulated Cu within or
close to the limit of 10 mg/kg, with shoot concentrations
of copper of 10.63 mg/kg and 8.67 mg/kg, respectively.
The roots accumulated more Cu and Zn than the shoots
in all cases except Zn in the WW plants where accumula-
tion was noticed in shoots as well. This result is in correla-
tion with the findings of Deng et al. (2004) and Demirezen
and Aksoy (2004) where the highest accumulations gener-
ally occurred in the root tissues in all the species studied.
Pinto (1996) found that celery, tomatoes and tobacco
plants accumulated both copper and zinc in their roots sig-
nificantly more than in their biomass above ground.
Vaillant et al. (2004) found that irrigation of foxgloves
with wastewater did not inhibit the total growth of the
plants, but rather the root system grew significantly more
than the shoot system. In this study though, only the
WW plants had longer roots than shoots with all the other
plants showing similar average shoot height and root
length. When considering a better growth of silver beet in
1.1 mg/L Cu spiked medium while not accumulating exces-
sively in the edible part shows that higher level as tested in
this study is in fact beneficial to silver beet while excessive
levels of Zn seemed to get accumulated in the edible parts
as well. Corey et al. (1987) and Dowdy et al. (1991)
reported that in leafy vegetables Cd and Zn got accumu-
lated with their concentration while for Cu and Ni the
accumulation in shoots did not differ much with concentra-
tion. This supports the findings of this study. Chaney
(1980) identified that in soil culture because of the soil–
plant barrier copper and zinc may not get accumulated to
such high levels as observed in this study. However, Mare-
cos do Monte et al. (1989) found that the use of primary
2541
CM 0.35 mg/L 1.1 mg/L
10.63 ± 0.71 8.67 ± 2.5 18 ± 0.3
58.67 ± 1.39 149.33 ± 20.3 233.33 ± 42.5
CM 1.7 mg/L 2 mg/L
393.33 ± 75.7 636.67 ± 111.7 1036.67 ± 132.9
1443.33 ± 195.7 1606.67 ± 248.6 2766.67 ± 774.8
Permissible limits (WHO, 1996) Optimum range
(Thung, 1991)
Soils Plants (mg/kg)
(mg/kg) (mg/kg)
0.5 10.0 20–100
1.50 5.0
and secondary treated wastewater did not affect the zinc
or copper composition compared to those plants grown
in potable water. This could be because the wastewater
had sufficient level of nutrients to support plant growth
and excessive uptake of Zn as happened in the present
study may not have occurred.
From the results it could be observed that the uptake of
Cu and Zn during different stages of plant growth may be
different. During the final stages when there was more
demand for water the heavy metals became concentrated
at their highest levels in the mediums, with the medium
spiked with the greatest concentrations of Cu and Zn
showing the highest accumulated concentrations. For this
study however the concentration of Cu and Zn chosen to
spike the medium was well above the limit that normally
was observed in domestic wastewater.
The study therefore revealed that the significantly
stunted growth observed with the plants grown in second-
ary treated WW was not due to the concentration of Cu
and Zn, as even the plants grown in the highest concentra-
tion of heavy metals spiked medium performed equally
good growth as the control medium. Although Epstein
(2003) reported that Zn toxicity can result in retarded
growth and symptoms similar to iron deficiency, that was
not observed in the present study as even the highest Zn
spiked medium produced good growth and no discolour-
ation. Speir et al. (2004) found that the yield of silver beet
grown on sites with 275 mg/kg added copper for four years
was unaffected which supports the observation from this
study. These findings are in opposition to many studies
which found that the presence of heavy metals stunted
the plant growth, inhibit seedling growth or root develop-
ment (Chunilall et al., 2004; Gothberg et al., 2002; Uveges
et al., 2002). The secondary treated WW contained very
low level of nitrates which could have affected the growth
of silver beet in WW. Oyama et al. (2006) and Marr
(1994) also observed that secondary treated domestic efflu-
2542 J. Nair et al. / Bioresource Technology 99 (2008) 2537–2543
ent may not have sufficient nitrates to support the growth
of leafy vegetables which would result in stunted growth
and yellowing of leaves. Vaillant et al. (2004) reported that
excess of root growth could occur due to a lack of
macronutrients as observed in WW plants. The low levels
of macronutrients in the WW could have encouraged the
plants to take up larger amounts of Zn and Cu from the
medium which would have resulted in greater accumula-
tion of particularly Zn in the plants.
Although this experiment showed that high levels of Cu
and Zn did not affect the growth, in a soil system Mapanda
et al. (2005) reported that heavy metal accumulation is in
the top 20 cm of soil, where the roots of plants grow and
areas that had been irrigated with wastewater for at least
10 years had toxic levels of heavy metals. Muchuweti
et al. (2005) also concluded that heavy metal accumulation
within the root zone regions of the soil substantially
exceeded the maximum levels for human consumption
and long term usage could be problematic. In a hydropon-
ics set-up however with annual plants being grown, this
accumulation of heavy metals in the root region would
be avoided as the nutrient source is continually being
replaced. There seemed to have a balance between the
uptake of Cu and Zn by silver beet and that remained in
the medium. This study therefore shows that the heavy
metal content in the domestic wastewater may not be a
problem for growing silver beet if sufficient quantities of
macronutrients are present in the effluent.
4. Conclusion
• Accumulation of Cu and Zn to a high level need not
affect the growth of silver beet and stunted growth and
discolouration could be due to the lack of macronutri-
ents. This may be true with hydroponics system when
medium is changed frequently and the heavy metals do
not get accumulated over crops as could happen with
soil culture.
• When macronutrients are not adequate, silver beet may
take up Zn while Cu appeared to accumulate more in
roots than in shoots.
• If adequate concentrations of macronutrients such as
nitrogen and phosphorus are available in wastewater,
it can be successfully used for growing silver beet
through hydroponics system.
• Provided the wastewater can be supplied reliably, in the
quantities needed and complying with the public health
requirements, then there is potential for utilising waste-
water as a nutrient source for producing edible crops.
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