Plant behavior

Plants do not appear to do anything, or at least nothing obvious. An old expression “saxa crescent, plantae, crescent et vivunt; animalia crescent, vivunt et sentient” - which means : Rocks grow, plants grow and are alive; while animals grow, live and feel or think.

Barbara McClintock looks at animal and plant behavior and says “Animals can walk around but plants have to stay still to do the same things with ingenious mechanisms – plants are extraordinary”

Plants are intelligent.  Scientists have been studying plants for many years and documenting plant perception.  Plants can solve problems and adapt to conditions in their environment, for example, growing toward light. Plants can sense magnetic fields and they respond to touch. They defend themselves against predators.  It is known that plants can store memories and are wise.  They learn from the experiences they have and they communicate with each other.

Plants communicate underground and aboveground.  Underground they send chemical messages to each other through their root systems.   Aboveground their are species known to release volatile organic compounds into the air when under attack.  Neighbouring plants know when this happens and use their defenses. How do they defend themselves?  They can turn different parts of their genetic code on or off in order to produce toxins; they change the structure of their leaves, making them tougher or less palatable to whoever may try to eat them.  They have the ability to release chemicals that attract predators to the pests that are plaguing them.

Farmers know that other plants in the same area influence plant growth.  There are some farmers that use music with specific frequencies to promote growth even further.