Foliar surface of plants is continuously exposed to the surrounding atmosphere and is, therefore, the main receptor of particulate pollutants. This physical trait can be used to determine the level of particulate pollution in the surroundings, as well as the ability of individual plant species to intercept and mitigate particulate pollutants. In the present study, leaf cuticle characters of four common roadside plant species, namely
Bougainvillea 'Mahara',
Terminalia arjuna
(Roxb.) Wt. and Arn,
Cassia fistula
Linn, and
Polyalthia longifolia
Thw. were studied from sites with heavy particulate pollutants in the atm in the trend of
T. arjuna (2.31 mg/cm
2)>
C. fistula (1.47 mg/ cm
2) >
B. 'Mahara'(1.33 mg/cm
2) and
P. longifolia (0.97 mg/cm
2). The increase in the size and frequency ofepidermal cells and stomata were observed. Cuticle rupture was a major injury symptom, that was observed in
T. arjuna,
C. fistula and
P. longifolia while no cuticular damage was not observed in
B. "Mahara". On the basis of these observations it can be concluded that
B. "Mahara" is a dust mitigator and it adsorbs and / or absorbs the pollutants from the environment in which it grows.
