Soil Enzymatic Activities as Influenced by Lead and Nickel Concentrations in a Vertisol of Central India.

A pot-culture was conducted in Completely Randomized Design with three replicates to study the effect of Pb and Ni on enzymatic activities in a Vertisols. Results indicated that increasing in the levels of Pb from 0, 100, 150 and 300 mg kg-1 soil significantly reduced the dehydrogenase activity (DHA) 38.9, 32.1, 30.9, 18.1 µg triphenylformazan g-1 soil 24 h-1; acid phosphatase activities 73, 61, 58, 55 µg PNP g-1 soil h-1 and alkaline phosphatase activities 80.7, 69.4, 66.2 and 64.0 µg PNP g-1 soil h-1, respectively. Application of Ni up to 100 mg kg-1 had significantly improved the soil enzymatic activities and thereafter there was no such change up to the highest level (300 mg Ni kg-1). Among soil enzymatic activities, DHA was more sensitive to Pb application. The findings generated through this study can be useful for managing waste water for safe disposal as well as sustainable crop production.