As the verdant hills of Wakanda are secretly enriched with the fictional metal vibranium in “Black Panther,” your average backyard also has hidden superpowers: Its soil can absorb and store a significant amount of carbon from the air, unexpectedly making such green spaces an important asset in the battle against climate change.

Backyard soils can lock in more planet-warming carbon emissions than soils found in native grasslands or urban forests like arboretums, according to Carly Ziter, a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

The results of her research, published Tuesday in the journal Ecological Applications, were something of a surprise, given that those of us who have yards generally don’t think of them as “nature,” or as especially beneficial to the environment. But at least in this case, the things we enjoy for ourselves are also helping the community at large.

Ms. Ziter studied the powers of yards by knocking on doors in Madison and asking residents to let her sample their backyard soil. Parents would often send their children outside to observe Ms. Ziter’s work. “They would say, ‘Oh, there’s a scientist in the yard, go see what she’s doing,’” she said, laughing. “All of a sudden there would be three small children and a dog surrounding me when I’m taking soil samples.”