%0 Journal Article %T Phytoremediation of Oil-Contaminated Soils by Combining Flowering Plant Cultivation and Inoculation with <i>Acinetobacter junii</i> Strain M-2 %A Takamitsu Kai %A Yu Okamoto %A Shuichiro Murakami %A Masahiko Tamaki %J Journal of Agricultural Chemistry and Environment %P 107-120 %@ 2325-744X %D 2020 %I Scientific Research Publishing %R 10.4236/jacen.2020.93010 %X Oil contamination of the soil by petroleum products has become an enormous environmental problem. In this study, we examined whether remediation of oil-contaminated soils by cultivating three flowering plants (Mimosa, Gazania, and Zinnia) could be enhanced by inoculation with Acinetobacter junii strain M-2 at different plant growth stages (at sowing, at early growth, and at mid-growth). The growth of Zinnia cultivated in oil-contaminated soils inoculated at sowing was significantly superior to that in the non-inoculated soil. Although total petroleum hydrocarbon concentrations in soils inoculated at sowing were nominally lower than those in non-inoculated soils, especially in the case of Zinnia planting, the effect did not reach statistical significance. However, dehydrogenase activity was significantly higher in the soils inoculated with A. junii strain M-2 than in non-inoculated soils for all three plant species tested. These results demonstrate that a combination of ornamental plant cultivation (particularly Zinnia) and inoculation with A. junii strain M-2 increases the efficiency of oil-contaminated soil phytoremediation. %K Phytoremediation %K Zinnia %K Acinetobacter junii Strain M-2 %K Total Petroleum Hydrocarbon %K Dehydrogenase Activity %U http://www.scirp.org/journal/PaperInformation.aspx?PaperID=102093