Abstract: 【Objective】 This study aimed to investigate heavy metal pollution characteristics in soil and plant of understory Polygonatum kingianum plantation in Yunnan Province， so as to provide scientific references for the sustainable development of the understory Polygonatum kingianum industry and ensuring the safety of medicinal plant consumption.【Method】 Main cultivation regions in seven towns or counties in Yunnan Province were selected as sampling areas. A total of 76 soil samples and 76 plant samples were collected to determine their contents of cadmium （Cd）， arsenium （As）， lead （Pb）， mercury （Hg）， and copper （Cu）. The five characteristics of heavy metals pollution were assessed using the excess rate， single-factor pollution index， Nemerow comprehensive pollution index， potential ecological risk index， target hazard quotient， hazard index， and bioconcentration factor. Pearson correlation coefficients were used to analyze the correlations among soil heavy metals， as well as the correlation between pH and heavy metals in the soil， and the correlation between Polygonatum kingianum rhizomes and soil heavy metals.【Result】 The excess rates of Cd， As， Pb， and Cu in soil were 52.63%， 14.47%， 10.53%， and 15.79%， respectively. Severely Cd-polluted sampling sites accounted for 5.26%； moderate As-polluted sampling sites accounted for 10.53%； slight pollution of Pb and Cu was found， and Hg showed no pollution. The Nemerow comprehensive pollution index for the five heavy metals was 1.20， indicating a slight pollution and a moderate potential ecological risk. No heavy metal excess in Polygonatum kingianum rhizomes was found， and both the target hazard quotient and risk index were below 1， indicating no obvious health risk to humans. Polygonatum kingianum rhizomes showed the highest bioconcentration capacity for Cd， with the mean bioconcentration factor of 0.368， while the ability to concentrate other four heavy metals was weak. Extremely significant positive correlations （P<0.001， the same below） were found between Cd and Hg contents， between Cd and Cu contents， as well as between As and Hg contents in soils， with correlation coefficients of 0.62， 0.56， and 0.52， respectively. Regar-ding the same metals， Cd contents in rhizomes and soil showed a significant positive correlation （P<0.05）， while As and Pb contents in rhizomes and soil exhibited extremely significant positive correlations.【Conclusion】 The soil of understory Polygonatum kingianum plantation in Yunnan Province shows different levels of excess in contents of Cd， As， Pb， and Cu， as Cd exhibits the heaviest pollution. The Polygonatum kingianum rhizomes exhibit a certain capacity to concentrate Cd， but no heavy metal excess was detected， indicating its safety to be a traditional Chinese medicinal material.