摘要：Seed germination, one of the most important phase in the life cycle of a plant, is highly responsive to the existing environment. High levels of heavy metals significantly change the structural orientation of leaf, root and shoot. This paper reports on the effect of Cd toxicity on seed germination, seedling growth, photosynthetic pigment content and structural orientation of vascular tissues in chickpea (Cicer arietinum L) seedlings. Results showed that inhibition of seed germination and root growth started at 0.10 mM cadmium treatment solution and the highest inhibitive effect was found at 50.0 mM concentration. The accumulation of cadmium in plant parts are in the order root > stem > leaf. From the SEM study it was found that normal orientation of the vascular tissues as well as associated tissues are disrupted and the stomatal complexes with guard cells were highly affected in the leaves.
