My basil plant exploded after I stopped talking to it

For three years I talked to my kitchen basil every morning. Gave it compliments, read it the weather forecast. It stayed tiny and sad. Then I went on a two-week trip to visit my sister in Phoenix and forgot about it completely. Came back to a bush that took over the whole windowsill. The neighbor who watered it said she never said a word to it. So now I ignore it and it's huge. Is the myth about plants liking conversation just a way to make us feel better about talking to ourselves?

3 comments

3 Comments

patricialee20d ago

Three years of talking and no growth? That's wild.

holly_henderson8620d ago

Did your friend try asking them directly what's wrong?

graygonzalez18d ago

But what if your talking was actually stunting its growth? Maybe the constant attention stressed it out, like a kid whose parent hovers too much. Plants are living things and they do respond to their environment, but that doesn't mean they want a chat every morning. Your neighbor ignoring it might have been the best thing for it, like giving it space to just be a plant. So the myth isn't a lie, it's just more complicated than "talk equals growth." Silence worked for you and that's a valid data point too.