PubMed · 2026-05-26
Planting lavender in heavily polluted soil — then adding specific soil bacteria — removed up to 67% of tin and 45% of lead in just 90 days, outperforming either approach used alone. The plant-microbe partnership also rebuilt a healthier, more functional underground microbial community in the process.
The combined plant + bacteria treatment removed 44.75% of lead and 66.87% of tin from historically contaminated soil over 90 days — the highest of all tested approaches.
Microbial community composition shifted significantly (PERMANOVA p = 0.001), with an increase in bacteria linked to metal detoxification, stress tolerance, and biofilm formation.
Functional prediction identified 7,959 metabolic functions in the combined treatment, with the highest redundancy in metal-handling pathways like efflux pumps and siderophore production — suggesting a resilient, self-reinforcing cleanup system.
