Do you remember growing up and hearing that plants respond to music and that to encourage good growth you need to sing to them. Many gardeners believe their plants respond to music – that faded blooms will revive with an aria. Strange as it may seem, there is some scientific evidence that supports the theory that plants respond to music.
A woman by the name of Dorothy Retallack did a series of studies on how plants respond to music at the Colorado Women’s College. Her scientific studies showed plants will be healthier when exposed to classical music. So not only will Mozart boost your brainpower but it will also make your plants thrive. Some studies also showed the plants would lean towards the source of the classical music in a similar fashion that they would lean towards the sun. Interestingly enough it was also commonly shown that exposing plants to rock music has the opposite effect – plants exposed to rock music would show stunted growth and in fact would often die and those that survived would have weak root systems.
Plants are truly amazing as not only do they seem to respond to music they also seem to have the ability (along with modern technology) to make music. Imagine going out to your favourite greenhouse not only to enjoy the atmosphere but also to listen to a selection of musical numbers. Non-believers beware because there truly is the ability for plants to make music.
There are a number of people that are making music from plants in a variety of ways. Linda Long has created a CD of relaxing music that was derived from proteins that are found in medicinal plants. She markets this CD as “ideal for use by health professionals and other individuals to enhance meditation, mind-body visualization and to promote relaxation.” Her technique is to use computer generated note sequences from plant proteins that were isolated from specific plants. She then would arrange these notes into complex multidimensional musical pieces.
Mileece, another skilled musical talent, developed a “generative plant biofeedback system” to make her music from plants. She discovered a way to make sounds out of the electromagnetic impulses of plants and is currently gathering data on plants grown the world over.
If you are a gardener already amazed by the plant world, then the ever-strengthening bond between music and plants may not be too surprising. But, think to the future, walking into a garden paradise filling your senses with the beauty your eyes see, the wonderful array of scents you can smell and, yes, the marvelous music that the plants are creating. Do you “hear the music”?
— Hanbidge is a horticulturist with the Saskatoon School of Horticulture and can be reached at 306-931-GROW(4769); by email at [email protected] or check out our website at saskhort.com.
