Sunflowers are beautiful. Their bright yellow flowers reach five feet or more in the air, and their seeds make some of the tastiest snack foods. These beautiful plants can, and are, also being used to clean up radiation.

Sunflowers are known as hyperaccumulators in the science community. They take in high amounts of toxic chemicals or materials and store them in their tissues. These chemicals get stored in the stems and leaves of the plants. They grow so quickly that a field contaminated by radioactive material can get cleaned up in three to four years.

It might take a bit longer than traditional cleanup methods, but it is much easier to dispose of a field of sunflowers than it is to dig up and move contaminated soil.