by Maureen Wise, on April 15, 2020
You read that right, flowers can hear. If hearing means responding to sound and vibration, that is. As reported in National Geographic, research conducted at Tel Aviv University last year concluded that flowers definitely respond to nearby vibrations.
Evening Primroses in Tel Aviv
Dr. Lilach Hadany is a professor and researcher at Tel Aviv University whose research focus is on vibrations found in nature. She and her team conducted studies using the Evening Primrose, a flowering plant found abundantly in their bioregion with a long bloom time and, more importantly, a measurable nectar production.
In the lab, the research team exposed flowers to five sound profiles, including one that was silent. The plants that were played no noise or low, intermediate, and high-frequency noises, did not react. But those that were played direct recordings of honeybees only a few inches away, responded in a big way. Within mere minutes, their nectar was sweeter to attract those theoretically nearby honeybees to their flowers. Is this hearing? The team continued their studies.
Dr. Hadnay and her team hypothesized that the flower itself acts as the “ear.” When they plucked petals off flowers, the plants no longer reacted to the honeybee sounds by increasing and sweetening nectar production. They repeated the same experiments with plants grown indoors, outdoors, and in different seasons. Additionally, the researchers matched the vibrations that the flowers were experiencing compared to the wavelengths created by the noises with a laser vibrometer, a machine to document and record vibration. Isn’t hearing reacting to a noise? The team concluded that yes, plants were hearing through their flowers and even gave a name to this new field of research: Phytoacoustics. Hadnay acknowledges there is much more research to be done to find out what else plants and their flowers can hear, how other plants hear, and how else they would react to sound.
Flowering plants reproduce via pollination with the help of flying insects carrying their pollen. The scent and sugar content of the nectar of flowers attracts insects as a food source. The pollen sticks to the hairs and legs of the insects while they eat or collect the nectar. And so reacting to the presence of these insects with sweeter nectar would positively impact plant reproduction as it attracts more insects.
Taking Care of Your Own Flowers
We have a few tricks to share on how to take care of your own flowers in a greener way, to help impact their reproduction as well. We do recommend talking to them, especially if you’re a lady.
Jokes aside, we do recommend adding Neem Cake to your potting and gardening soils more. Neem cakes help stabilize soil and help the soil store water longer. It is a nutrient collector and slowly releases nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium, as well as other helpful micronutrients.
The health of your flowers will benefit by repelling Japanese Beetles and their babies, which are the grubs in your soil! We suggest using Milky Spore, a beneficial bacteria that is safe for people, pets and the environment, but detrimental to Japanese Beetle Grubs.
Use natural products like Burnout, to minimize weeds in mulch beds, instead of Roundup, which has been linked to a myriad of toxic side effects.
If you are having problems with slugs invading your garden, we like Slug Magic, which is biodegradable and safe for kids, as well as other animals.
Do you talk to your flowers? Will you start playing them honeybee recordings? They may be responding more than you think!
FAQs
A flower is the bloom or blossom of a plant. The flower is the part of a plant that produces seeds, which in time become other flowers. This is thanks to a process called pollination that is carried out either by insects or the wind. Every type of flower is different, in colour, smell, shape and size.
How can flowers hear buzzing bees? ›
How plants detect the sound of bees is unknown. However, using highly sensitive laser instruments, the researchers found that the evening primrose flowers vibrate when played recordings of bee or moth sounds. Hadany thinks that flowers may receive sound pressure in a similar way to ears.
What can a flower hear? ›
If what we mean by hearing is just that a plant detects and responds to sounds, then there's evidence that they're right. In 2019 a team of Israeli scientists published evidence that the evening primrose plant can detect the specific sound vibration frequencies of the buzz of an insect's wings.
What is a flower long answer? ›
Flower is the main reproductive part of the plant. It is made up of four whorls and out of them two outer whorls are the calyx and corolla. The inner two whorls are androecium or the male part of the flower and gynoecium or the female part of the flower.
What is a bunch of flowers one word answer? ›
flowers A bouquet is a bunch of flowers arranged in an attractive way.
Can flowers hear bees? ›
Using the evening primrose, or Oenothera drummondii, the scientists showed that the sound of a flying bee, as well as “synthetic sound-signals at similar frequencies,” induced the flowers to excrete sweeter nectar within three minutes.
What noise attracts bees? ›
This means that bees are attracted to music with a 250-500 Hz frequency as it is reminiscent of the sounds they produce in the hive.
Can flowers sense bees? ›
They found that the bowl-shaped primroses resonated with the bee sounds and the low-frequency sounds, but did not vibrate with the other frequencies. If flower petals were removed, their sense of “hearing” was disabled as well. “We were quite surprised when we found out that it actually worked,” Hadany tells Donahue.
Can flowers see you? ›
Sight. While other animals rely largely on smell to navigate their environment, the most important human sense is arguably sight. Plants don't “see” in a way that is recognisable to us, but they can detect many different forms of light, from ultraviolet through to infrared.
Can plants hear me talk? ›
In a study performed by the Royal Horticultural Society, researchers discovered that talking to your plants really can help them grow faster. 1 They also found that plants grow faster to the sound of a female voice than to the sound of a male voice.
While plants don't hear sound like you and I do, they certainly can feel the vibration of audio. In fact, plants use acoustic vibrations in their everyday lives! Evidence has suggested that plants can communicate with each other through vibration. Plants can even locate water by sensing its vibrations with their roots.
Which is the most beautiful flower? ›
The Most Beautiful Flowers In The World
- Iris. The iris flower appears to have been intricately designed by a meticulous creator. ...
- Lilac. Lilacs are a favourite among many for their enchanting fragrance. ...
- Water Lily. ...
- Marigold. ...
- Orchid. ...
- Dahlia. ...
- Bird-Of-Paradise. ...
- Rose.
Flower is from the Middle English flour, which referred to both the ground grain and the reproductive structure in plants, before splitting off in the 17th century. It comes originally from the Latin name of the Italian goddess of flowers, Flora.
What is a flower for kids? ›
A flower is the. part of a plant that blossoms. Flowers produce the seeds that can become new plants. Most plants, including many trees, grow some kind of flower.
What is a flower in simple words? ›
A flower is a fragile blossom that has petals and grows at the top of the stem of a plant. Flowers attract bees, who help out with the pollination process so more plants can grow. Roses, daisies, and carnations are all types of flowers. Flower is also a verb meaning to bring forth flowers.
What does love came to Flora asking for a flower question answer? ›
The correct answers are -
Love came to the goddess of flowers Flora and asked it for the creation of a unique flower. It must be the undisputed queen and the most beautiful of all . 2. Flower Lily and Flower Rose had been fighting for the highest place of honour.
What is this a flower? ›
: the specialized part of an angiospermous plant that occurs singly or in clusters, possesses whorls of often colorful petals or sepals, and bears the reproductive structures (such as stamens or pistils) involved in the development of seeds and fruit : blossom.
What makes it a flower? ›
A flower is defined as the seed-bearing part of a plant, consisting of reproductive organs that are typically surrounded by a brightly colored petals and green sepals.
