Can a plant pull copper out of contaminated soil? Some plants absorb heavy metals through their roots in a process called phytoremediation (using plants to clean up pollution). Copper is useful to plants in small amounts. Too much copper damages root systems and stunts growth. Yet certain species bind the excess and remove it. You design an experiment to test how well different plants take up copper from soil treated with copper sulfate solution. The setup also lets you measure the role of soil and microorganisms separately from the plant itself. A copper test kit tracks how much copper remains in the soil after the plants grow. The results show whether living roots can measurably reduce copper levels.