Effect of aluminum and chromium on the germination and growth of two Vigna species

ABSTRACT

The study deals with the effect of metal toxicity [aluminum, chromium and combination of both the metals] on seed germination, root length, shoot length, seedling length and dry biomass of Vigna radiata and V. sinensis. Chromium adversely affected the seedling by significantly reducing the growth whereas aluminum did not show such effect in both the species. Percentage of germination was good in both the species at different concentration of treatment [aluminum, chromium and combined treatment]. Shoot length was also not much affected in V. sinensis as it was greatly inhibited in V. radiata. Both the species showed the purpling of stem. Dry biomass of V. radiata showed positive effect than V. sinensis. However, dry biomass decreased to a lesser extent when treated with aluminum, chromium and combined treatment as compared to control