Preliminary Evaluation of Equisetum Hymale As a Bioaccumulator of Al, B, Zn and Fe.

Equisetum species are ancient, vascular, fern-like species, known as horsetails or scouring rushes. Due to their lack of economic importance, Equisetum species have not been as extensively studied when compared to food and fiber crops. However, it has been demonstrated their potential to non-selectively accumulate metals and/or nutrients within their tissues and their importance in nutrient cycling. Field samples of Equisetum hyemale that were collected and analyzed in 2007 revealed that these plants were indeed hyperaccumulators of selected elements. We have recently conducted a preliminary study of these plants from Nodaway County, Missouri under controlled conditions in the greenhouse laboratory. The analysis of E. hyemale aboveground tissues demonstrated that it significantly accumulated zinc (960%), iron (180%), copper (110%) and boron (2400%) in its aerial stems than was bioavailable in the soil. In addition, E. hyemale accumulated 1100, 350, 3800, 750, and 2300% more zinc, manganese, iron, copper and boron in its rhizome structure than was bioavailable in the soil, respectively.