The Importance and Necessity to Consider Cadmium (Cd) as a Problematic Element in Soil Fertility and Plant Nutrition

The necessity to produce food for the population of the world is a critical challenge, which it will not be solved without paying attention to the soil health and soil quality. The soil health and soil quality through directly and indirectly affecting the yield plants impress the public health. There are different essential and non-essential elements in the soil that their interactions with each other and also with soil components is determining their final fate in the soil in terms of the bioavailability to plants or causing contamination in the soil and environment. One of the important non-essential elements to plants is Cadmium (Cd), which because of its high mobility and capability of accumulation in different organs of plants is known as one of the most harmful and toxic metals for public health. Although plants are equipped with various defensive mechanisms against potentially toxic metals like Cd, but alleviating management practices are needed to mitigate the adverse effects of Cd accumulation in the soil, plants, and environment. The present chapter aims to provide a clearer understanding of the position and importance of Cd in agriculture and the environment, the interactions between Cd, soil fertility, and plant nutrition, and the efficacy of using of management of soil fertility and plant nutrition in the status of Cd in the soil and plants.