A complete survey is presented on the inorganic composition of the euhalophyte annual succulent species Salicornia patula (Chenopodiaceae), including materials from the Iberian Peninsula, littoral-coastal Tinto River basin areas (SW Spain: Huelva province), and mainland territories (NW and central Spain: Zamora and Toledo provinces). The aim of this contribution is to characterize the elemental composition of the selected populations and their soils and compare the relationship between them and the macro- and micronutrient plant intake; all these nutrients may allow this species to be considered an edible plant. Using analytical techniques such as ICP-MS (inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry), our results revealed high values of Na and K followed by Ca, Mg, Fe and Sr in stems. These data demonstrate the importance of annual halophytic species as edible plants and their potential uses in phytoremediation procedures involving soils with certain heavy metals (Pb, Sr, As, Cu, Zn).
Keywords: Edible plants; Halophytes; Heavy metals; Nutrients; Phytoremediation; Salicornia.