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Abstract
Zinc fertilization in soil may ameliorate the negative health effects of Cd in crops. Therefore, a screenhouse experiment was conducted to study the effect of Cd (0, 5, 10, 25, and 50 mg Cd kg‐1 soil) as influenced by Zn (0, 5, 25, and 50 mg Zn kg‐1 soil) on dry matter yield of maize (Zea mays L.) and tissue concentration and uptake of Cd, Zn, Mn, Cu, N, P, and K. Application of Cd to soil decreased dry matter yield significantly at all concentrations of Zn. Addition of Zn to soil, however, did not affect yield at any concentration of Cd. Increasing concentrations of Cd in the soil increased the tissue concentration and uptake of Cd more in presence than in the absence of soil‐applied Zn, indicating that Zn application could not override the toxic effect of Cd. Concentration of N, P, K, Zn, Cu, and Mn in maize tissue increased with the application of Cd to soil. The uptake of these elements by maize decreased, except that of N and Mn which recorded an increasing trend up to 10 mg Cd kg‐1 soil treatment. The concentration and uptake of P, Cu, Mn, and Zn in maize tissue increased, while those of N and K were unaffected by increasing concentrations of applied Zn to the soil.