To investigate the mobility and availability of metals from soil to plant, concentrations of zinc (Zn), copper (Cu), lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd), mercury (Hg) and arsenic (As) in topsoils and plants (lettuce, scallion, celery, tomato, carambola, wampee and longan) collected from the area around a petrochemical complex in Guangzhou, China, were analyzed. The modified European Community Bureau of Reference (BCR) three-step sequential extraction procedure was applied to determine the concentration of metal fractions in soils. The results showed that the distribution of Zn, Cu, Pb and Cd in four fractions varied greatly among the soil samples, and 18.8% of vegetable and fruit samples for Cd and 5.8% for Pb exceeded the maximum permissible levels in food of China. Soil-to-plant transfer coefficients were in the order of Cd>Zn>Cu>Hg>As>Pb, suggesting Cd being the most mobile and available to plants among the metals studied. Principal component analysis indicated that metal fractions and soil physicochemical properties (pH, organic matter, cation exchange capacity, clay content and electrical conductivity) affected metal uptake by plants. Furthermore, atmospheric deposition may be another important factor for the accumulation of metals in plants.