Barium for Plants: A Component of Cell Membranes
Barium (Ba)
For the plant – a component of cell membranes.
Barium is usually present in plants, but is apparently not an essential element for them.
There is evidence that barium is a component of the support skeleton for plants, meaning it is part of the cell membranes.
The barium content ranges from 1 to 198 mg/kg of dry mass, reaching the highest values in the leaves of cereal and leguminous plants and the lowest in grains and fruits.
The maximum barium content in the plant organism is observed in fully formed mature fruits.
Plants can easily absorb barium from acidic soils. Plants growing in soils with high barium content are toxic to animals.
With excessive barium intake, plants may experience phosphorus starvation at the cellular level, which primarily affects the formation of reproductive organs. Excess barium inhibits growth and delays seed maturation, leading to reduced yields and decreased quality. Plants significantly slow their growth, and their leaves acquire (first at the edges, then over the entire surface) a gray-green, purple, or red-violet color.
The possible toxic effect of barium on plants can be significantly reduced by adding calcium, magnesium, and sulfur salts to the nutrient medium for plant development. Antagonistic interactions between these elements and barium can manifest in both plant tissues and soils.
The highest barium content (over 10,000 mg/kg of dry mass) has been found in some trees and shrubs, as well as in the fruits of Bertholletia excelsa (= Brazil nut). Soybeans and tomatoes also concentrate barium from the soil.
Medicinal plants containing barium:
• meadow clover Trifolium pratense L., Fabaceae (herb, content – 14.2–19.8 mg%);
• common corn Zea mays L., Poaceae (aerial part, content – 13.2–18.1 mg%);
• species of the genus willow Salix L., Salicaceae (leaves);
• silver birch Betula pendula Roth, Betulaceae (leaves);
• Bertholletia excelsa (= Brazil nut) Bertholletia excelsa Humb. & Bonpl., Lecythidaceae (fruits);
• species of hawthorn Crataegus L., Rosaceae (fruits, ash content – 10–100 mg%);
• species of rosehip Rosa L., Rosaceae (fruits, ash content – 10–60 mg%).
• meadow clover Trifolium pratense L., Fabaceae (herb, content – 14.2–19.8 mg%);
• common corn Zea mays L., Poaceae (aerial part, content – 13.2–18.1 mg%);
• species of the genus willow Salix L., Salicaceae (leaves);
• silver birch Betula pendula Roth, Betulaceae (leaves);
• Bertholletia excelsa (= Brazil nut) Bertholletia excelsa Humb. & Bonpl., Lecythidaceae (fruits);
• species of hawthorn Crataegus L., Rosaceae (fruits, ash content – 10–100 mg%);
• species of rosehip Rosa L., Rosaceae (fruits, ash content – 10–60 mg%).