Based on the identification of Mirabilis jalapa L. as a new Cd-hyperaccumulating ornamental, the growth response of the plant to interaction between cadmium (Cd) and phosphorus (P), its effect on the Cd accumulation in the species and relevant mechanisms were further investigated by the pot-culture experiment with chemical analyses and the X-ray absorption near edge structure spectra (XANES). It showed that the leaf, shoot and root biomass (as dry matter) increased with an increase in P supplies from 20 to 100 mg kg(-1) at various tested Cd levels except 10 mg kg(-1). The Cd accumulation in the leaves and shoots significantly decreased with increasing P concentrations from 20 to 500 mg kg(-1) at the Cd concentrations from 10 to 50 mg kg(-1), except the Cd level at 100 mg kg(-1). It was also found that the translocation factor of Cd in M. jalapa L. reached the maximum at different tested Cd levels when the concentration of added P was 100 mg kg(-1), but the biciaccumulation factor of Cd decreased with increasing R This changing law may be responsible for the mechanism of P immobilizing Cd. The investigation using the P-K edge XANES showed the spectra of adsorbed phosphate in the shoots exhibited a stronger white-line peak than that in the leaves and roots, and the oscillation near 2165 eV was more intense. Besides, the P-K edge XANES spectra for M. jalapa L. indicated P may exist as Cd-phosphate. Thus, it can be inferred that the addition of P at appropriate contents may be a useful approach to enhance the plant growth and to immobilize Cd in the Cd-contaminated soil. Furthermore, P and Cd may form a deposit in plants to tolerate Cd toxicity for reducing the degree of the structural damage of the plant. (C) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.