Abstract:This paper is a study on the charcaterics of sulphur accumulation from the air in 50 species of plants and the soils in the suburbs of Beijing and their indicative and purgative abilities. The results of an investigation show that among all the 50 species Salix matsudana has the highest sulphur content, while Spiraea blumei has the lowest. According to their sulphur contents, different types of plants can be arranged in the following order: mosses deciduous broad trees>herbs>deciduous shrubs>evergreen coniferous trees. The sulphur content of plants and soils in industry pollution area‘ are the highest. The sulphur content of plants in this area are 2.5–10 times higher than the background value and the sulphur content of soils are 4 times higher than the background value. The sulphur contents of the plants and soils can be used as an indicator of the state of sulphur pollution, which reflects the environmental quality of the air in different function areas. The amount of purification of ten different plants has been investigated. Among the trees under investigation Paulownria tomentosa has the greatest amount, which is about 6 kg/ha per year. According to their amount of purification they can be arranged in the following order: Paulownria tomentosa>Salix matsudana>Sophora japonica> Robinia pseudoacacia> Populus tomentosa. Among the shrubs under investigation Syringa oblata has the highest amount, which is about 4 kg/h per year. According to their amount of purification, they can be arranged in the following order: Syringa oblata > Spiraea blumei> Prunus triloba > Lagerstromia indica > Forsythia suspensa. We suggest that the results of the study can provide a scientific basis for city planning and selecting suitable species of plants which have large amount of purification and strong resistance.