RADIAL AND AXIAL GRADIENTS OF

LEAD CONCENTRATION IN BARK AND

XYLEM OF HARDWOODS
RiJDIGER HAMPP and WOLFGANG HOLL
Department of Botany
Technical University
8000 Miinchen 2
Arcisstrafle 21

The bark and wood tissues of Robinia pseudoacacia L., Tilia cordata Mill., and
A c e r platanoides L., grown in different localities of Munich with varying traffic
intensity, were quantitatively analyzed for lead content in both radial and axial
directions. In comparison to the non-heartwood-forming genera (Tilia, A c e r ) the
heartwood-forming Robinia showed distinct differences in radial distribution of
lead: the sapwood of Robinia had higher lead contamination than the heartwood.
The innermost heartwood zone of this species had a higher lead content than did
the younger heartwood tissue. In TiIia and A c e r , the wood zones of different ages
did not exhibit significant differences in their lead concentrations. The bark surface
showed a high lead concentration which could be washed off to a large extent with
water. The lead concentration in the trunk of Robinia was found to increase in
basipetat direction. The lead content in bark and sapwood of this species was
proportional to the traffic intensity in the neighborhood. The results are discussed
in relation to the possible translocation of lead within the trees.

Atmospheric pollutants in engine emissions are a potential threat to the existance o f

bio-systems. In highly populated areas, industrial regions as well as near airports, the
accumulation of lead is extraordinarily high (Rohmeder and Weber 1970). Increasing
motorization has substantially added to the rise of lead concentrations in the environ-
ment, especially in the form ofPbC1Br, ~-,/3-NH4 CI- 2PbC1Br, 2NH4C1- Br and 3Pb 3(PO4)2
PbC1 (Hirschler and Gilbert 1964). In Munich alone, there is a lead pollution of about
0.7 tons each working day (Wirth 1971).

Several investigations have indicated that large amounts o f lead together with other
toxic substances from car exhausts are concentrated by plants (Garber 1970, Heilenz
1970, Kloke and Riebartsch 1964). If the tolerance limit is exceeded, toxicity symptoms
such as premature leaf abcission and leaf necrosis, may be observed.

It was the objective of this investigation to study the distribution of lead in various
parts of trees located along streets of varying traffic intensity. Since (a) traffic intensity
has increased significantly during the last decade and (b) lead translocation in plant tissue
was reported to be minimal, the lead concentration of the older inner annual rings was
expected to be lower compared to that of the younger peripheral ones. Attention was also

Archives of Environmental Contamination 143

and Toxicology, Vol. 2, No. 2, 1974, © 1974
by Springer-Verlag New York Inc.
144 Riidiger Hampp and Wolfgang HiSll

paid to the possibility that lead accumulation is affected by heartwood formation, one of
the most important changes in trees.

Materials a n d m e t h o d s
Three tree species differing in the distribution of their conductive tissue and their
ability to form heartwood, were investigated. These tree species (Robinia pseudoacacia L.,
Tilia cordata Mill., and Acer platanoides L.) are common in the city of Munich. Samples
from trunks and young twigs were taken from trees growing at locations of varying traffic
intensity and analyzed quantitatively for lead. At a height of 150 cm from the ground,
wood cylinders of the trunk were obtained with the aid of an increment borer. The
cylinders were subdivided into bark, phloem tissue, and wood. The wood was cut into
segments of ten-mm length (approximately two annual rings each). Pith was present in
the majority of the samples. The wood cylinders so obtained were dried at 1 IO°C,
weighed, and ashed at 550°C. The ash was dissolved in concentrated HNO3 and the acid
then evaporated. This process was repeated several times until a pure white residue re-
mained. In this way it was possible to transform insoluble lead compounds into easily
soluble nitrates. The residue was dissolved in one ml of distilled water, and lead was
estimated quantitatively by atomic absorption spectrophotometry (Unicam SP 90 A
Series 2, Phillips) at 283.3 nm (Fletcher 1971). The distribution of lead in young twigs
of Acer was analyzed as follows: The branches were freed of secondary bark, whereby
the phloem part remained unaffected, and cut into segments in the basal direction, then
dried and weighed. Lead was then estimated as described above. To determine the lead
concentration in secondary bark and phloem zones of the trunk of Robinia, the tissue
was obtained with the aid of a chisel. After drying, the tissue blocks were glued on a
wood block and cut into one-mm slices in a tangential direction with a sliding microtome.

Phosphate in the bark and wood cylinders was determined according to Fiske and
Subbarow (1925).

R e s u l t s a n d discussion
A positive correlation between the lead concentration in bark of Robinia pseudoacacia
L. and the traffic intensity was observed (Fig. 1). This correlation is much weaker for the
sapwood and nonexistant for the heartwood. The bark of Robinia obtained at differ-
ent heights above the ground showed a gradient of lead concentration (Table I); the
maximum lead contamination was found at 150 cm above ground level. These results
suggest that lead-containing exhausts of cars lie predominantly in this height range,
possibly due to turbulance effects.

The upper and lower parts of the trunks showed a dust cover with minor lead content.
This pattern of lead distribution was not present in the wood tissue (sap and heartwood
values combined; Table I). In this tissue there may even be a decrease in lead content with
increased trunk height.

An exact analysis of the bark tissue in the radial direction indicated that the high lead
content was on the surface (Fig. 2). Washing experiments (Table II) showed that most of
 Gradients of Lead Concentration in Hardwoods 145

95-
//g Pb2+/g dry-wt.

B Bark

60-- ~ Sapwood

I Heartwood N
40--

20 l ,,"
\

700 i 800 ~ 900 w1000 * 11 O0 I1200 J1300 ! 14001150011600117001180011900 1200012100 !

Car units/h

Fig, 1. Lead concentration in bark, sapwood and heartwood of Robinia pseudoaeacia L.

as a function of traffic intensity. Traffic density in car units/h is based on averages of the
peak evening hours recorded during 1969 and 1971 (Wirth 1971). The lead values of 45
analyzed trunks show a positive correlation to the traffic intensity at the following
probability levels: P = 0.01 (700-1100 car units/h), P = 0.05 (1100-1600/1600-2100 car
units/h).

Table [ Lead Content o f the Bark and Wood o f Robinia Pseudoacac& L. at

Different Heights Above Ground Level

tteight above
ground (cm) 50 100 150 200 250 300

Lead content of the

bark (/~g/g dry-wt.) 69.00 88.25 105.90 74.40 79.10 75.60

Lead content of the wood

(sap- and heartwood
together;/ag/g dry-wt.) 7.45 6.00 5.94 5.63 5.52 5.54

the lead was deposited superficially on the bark. After washing for ten minutes in a
stream of distilled water, only about 40 percent o f the initial concentration of the metal
was detectable in the peripheral tissue o f the bark. Suchodoller (1967) showed for leaf
tissue that the removal o f lead from the surface by washing with water is time dependent.
146 Riidiger Hampp and Wolfgang H611

3001 ~
\

vi 25-
15-

I I I l l I I l I I l l I ----r-- ]
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15
Barkdepths[mm]
Fig. 2 Lead concentration in different zones of the bark and phloem of Robinia
pseudoacacia L. at 150 cm above ground.

Table It Effect o f Washing on the Lead

Accumulation on the Bark Surface o f
Robinia Pseudoacacia L.

Lead accumulation
Bark (#g/g dry-wt.)

Unwashed 681.90

Washed 273.95

Even at a depth of one mm from the surface, only 1/20 of the lead concentration was
observed. The average lead content of the phloem (9-14 ram; Fig. 2) was more than that
of the outer zones of the bark (4-8 mm; Fig. 2). This may be due to transport of lead
from the leaves through the sieve tubes in basal direction. The data in Fig. 3 indicate such
a translocation: (a) the lead content of the twigs seems to be proportional to the leaf
area above the point of measurement; (b) the lead concentration below the insertion of
two twigs exhibits (in three of four cases) a higher amount than that of either twig directly
above the intersection. The evidence for a migration of lead into the sieve tubes is in-
direct. Because of the high concentration of free phosphate in the sieve tubes, one would
 Gradients of Lead Concentration in Hardwoods 147

14 Ieaves
\\ ,eo,.o.oce:

/ 4.90

2.33// 9 leaves
X ~ 8 leaves leaf surface:
./J\ leaf surface: 1305 cm2

\ ~ /7 12 leaves
~,-"'~J 2-. / ~ ' ~ )~ // leaf surface:
V .J.~4 2.37 ~ ? 6.79 /~/S"" 2700 km2
\ / ~ // 3.29 \ . / ~
878
lO.11 -"--,Q-"-~/ "
.... 7 . ~ , . 10.94

I 70cm t
Fig. 3. Lead content in different parts of a terminal twig of Acer platanoides L. The
values represent/ag Pb/g dry-wt.

have to assume that the lead is present as a complex. This "lead complex" should be so
stable that even high phosphate concentrations cannot split it.

The results further indicate that the xylem of the species investigated is also capable of
accumulating lead. Differences are observed in the radial direction in the heartwood-
forming Robinia. Fig. 4 shows the radial distribution of lead in the trunks of Robin&,
Tilia, and Acer. In Robinia (Fig. 4a) 80 percent of the samples exhibited a higher lead
content in the oldest heartwood near the pith than in the younger zones. With increasing
depth of the trunk the tendency toward increasing lead accumulation was not observed in
Tilia (Fig. 4b) and Acer (Fig. 4c). In these diffuse, porous species the heavy metal was
found distributed uniformly across the radial section of the trunks.

In tissues containing high phosphate concentrations a large part of the lead would be
precipitated by formation of Pb3(PO4)2 due to the insolubility of this salt (pK L = 43.5;
Seel 1960). Earlier investigations concerning the physiological role of lead (Koeppe and
Miller 1970, Cardona et al. 1971) point toward this close correlation between the
phosphate and the lead content of the tissue.

The results of the present investigation (Fig. 5) also show a fairly good correlation
between the lead and the phosphate content of the trunk of Robinia. The phosphate con-
tent is about 100 times higher than that of lead. In comparison with the heartwood, the
bark and the sapwood exhibit significantly higher phosphate content. In contrast to
heartwood, sapwood of Robin& exhibits physiologically active ray and parenchymous
cells (H~511 1972). It is interesting that the living part of the trunk accumulates high con-
centrations of lead. From these findings it is estimated that about 70 percent of the lead
148 Riidiger Hampp and Wolfgang H~511

o
@
4a
10-

8-

l
6-

:qJS
;o°j8 4b

~ 10-

lO-- 4c

Secondary 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
bark+phloem Trunk depth [cm]

Fig. 4. Lead concentration in radial direction of trunks of Robinia pseudoacacia L.

(4a), Tilia cordata Mill. (4b) and Aeer platanoides L. (4c). Averages of 45 trunks from
different locations in the city of Munich. The lead concentrations in sapwood and heart-
wood of Robinia (4a) are significantly different at 1% probability level. The increase of
lead content in the pith zone of this tree species is also significantly different from the
younger heartwood (P = 0.05).
 Gradients of Lead Concentration in Hardwoods 149

l----I po4 3-
[] Pb2+
40
30 t i 0.2
"3
20 .15

10- 0.1 ~,
23
13
"8 8- 0.08
E -6
E
z:L
6- -0.06 ~"
¢,1
O JD
o-
4 -0.04

2- j - 0.02

I
Secondary 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
bark+phloem Trunk depth [cm]

Fig. 5. Correlation between phosphate and lead concentration in bark and phloem as well
as wood tissue in radial direction of the trunk ofRobinia pseudoacaeia L.

Sapwood Heartwood
.C

30-
13
E
E
5 20-
O

O
E 10-
=k

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7.
No. of annual ring

Fig. 6. Potassium concentrations in different annual ring tissues of Robinia pseudoacacia

L. Annual ring No. 1 represents the youngest wood zone of the trunk. The sapwood
(annual rings 1-4) contains significantly more potassium than the heartwood (P = 0.05).
150 RiJdiger Hampp and Wolfgang HNI

present in the sapwood is probably fixed as lead phosphate during formation of heart-
wood. The remaining 30 percent of the lead in the sapwood, however, may be in a
mobile form, and may be transported in a centrifugal direction during the growth of
sapwood in each vegetation period. It has been suggested that lead as well as other heavy
metals is bound in exchangeable form to insoluble anionic groups, such as carboxyl
groups of polyuronic acids (Clymo 1963, Riihling and Tyler 1970).

According to Brown and Slingsby (1972) a certain amount of potassium shows a

similar binding to the cell wall. There is a relatively higher concentration of potassium in
the peripheral zones of the wood of Robinia compared to the older wood zones (Fig. 6).
It might therefore be possible that the mobile lead is displaced from its binding sites by
potassium. In the non-heartwood-forming species (Tilia and Acer), which possess living
parenchyma in all parts of the trunk, the uniform distribution of lead across the trunk
could be due to a radial translocation of the metal (Fig. 4b and 4c). It is possible that
because of this translocation into the older part of the wood of trees investigated, no
relation could be established between the lead pollution that took place during the last
15 years and the lead content of wood.

Acknowledgments

The authors are indebted to Miss Beatrice Schmidt for excellent technical assistance.
We thank Prof. Dr. H. Ziegler for critical reading of the manuscript, and Dr. N. Sankhla
and Dr. J. Sch~nherr for help in translation. We thank the Deutsche Forschungsgemein-
schaft for financial support.

References

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Cladonia rangiformis (L.) Hoffm. New Phytol. 71,297 (1972).
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 Gradients of Lead Concentration in Hardwoods 151

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Manuscript received July 20, 1973; accepted December 1, 1973