- Author: Karen Metz
When I was growing up I remember being intrigued by studies that seemed to show that plants grew better if played certain types of music. I know several gardeners that sing or talk to their plants. (I know I have threatened a few plants; perk up or you are going to the compost pile!)
It doesn't seem to be too much of a stretch to wonder what would happen if we read to our plants. It would be a way to combine my two loves: reading and gardening.
Of course, if I decided to read to my plants, I would have to be very careful with the book selections. The reading list could include Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling or The Arbor Day Lady by Mary Hellings. Flower Children and Wild Flower Children by Elizabeth Gordon would be good choices. And we could add Jack and the Beanstalk by Benjamin Tabert and The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein.
However there are some books that should probably be banned from our reading program for plants. The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle and Peter Rabbit by Beatrix Potter might be too frightening. How Green Was My Valley by Richard Llewellyn and Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell would be too depressing. Little Shop of Horrors by Howard Ashman and The Bad Seed by William March might just give them the wrong ideas.
One of my favorite gardening quotes is by Cicero; if you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need. I couldn't agree more. Plants and books have given me so much joy. Even if this combination idea doesn't work out, it's good to know I will never have to choose between them.