From the “Pod People” in “Invasion of the Body Snatchers” to “Audrey,” the killer alien plant in “Little Shop of Horrors,” there is no lack in pop-culture of sentient plants that wish humans ill.

Let us hope that this is not a case of life imitating art. Apparently, a group of scientists has taught spinach plants how to detect land mines and send emails!

Through the use of nanotechnology, engineers at MIT have transformed spinach into sensors capable of detecting explosive materials. These plants are then able to wirelessly relay this information back to the scientists.

When the spinach roots detect the presence of nitroaromatics in groundwater, a compound often found in explosives like landmines, the carbon nanotubes within the plant leaves emit a signal. This signal is then read by an infrared camera, sending an email alert to the scientists.

This experiment is part of a wider field of research that involves engineering electronic components and systems into plants. The technology is known as “plant nanobionics” and is a way of giving plants some creepy human and nearly superhuman new abilities.

“Plants are very good analytical chemists,” explains Professor Michael Strano, who led the research. “They have an extensive root network in the soil, are constantly sampling groundwater, and have a way to self-power the transport of that water up into the leaves.”

Strano adds that “This is a novel demonstration of how we have overcome the plant/human communication barrier.”

These plants were specifically engineered for the purpose of detecting land mines. As interesting and bizarre as that sounds, Strano and his team say their success has far-reaching implications. For example, it could be used to help monitor the impacts of pollution or of global climate change.

Because of the vast amount of data plants absorb from their surroundings, they are ideally suited to monitor any kind of changes in the environment.

In the early phases of plant nanobionic research, Strano used nanoparticles to make plants into sensors for pollutants. By altering how the plants photosynthesized, he was able to have them detect nitric oxide, a pollutant caused by combustion.

“Plants are very environmentally responsive,” Strano says. “They know that there is going to be a drought long before we do. They can detect small changes in the properties of soil and water potential. If we tap into those chemicals signaling pathways, there is a wealth of information to access.”

So it seems that spinach not only can give super-strength to a certain one-eyed sailor, it may just hold a future platform technology in its hands – or make that leaves!