Do Plants Have Feelings? Hope This Makes You Happy

Empaths lie awake at night pondering the questions of the universe. If you’re an empath, you might have wondered whether or not plants have feelings. And, if they don’t have feelings, do they at least have emotions? After all, they are organic beings. 

Well, we’ve been doing our own pondering and decided to research this issue. What we found was interesting and opened our eyes to the amazing adaptability of flora. Let’s dive in!

What are “Feelings,” Exactly?

Well, before completely diving in, we need to dip our toes into the water and define a few terms. When we mention feelings, we’re talking about something different than emotions. 

Emotions are biological and physiological responses to stimuli. Emotions often happen at a subconscious level, meaning we don’t have to even think about it for it to happen. 

An example of an emotion would be feeling tearful or nauseated after learning that a loved one has passed away. Those subconscious (or near-subconscious) responses happen without you actually trying to make them happen.

On the other hand, feelings are what our minds go to when we experience emotions. To illustrate, let’s continue with the above example of a loved one’s passing. On top of feeling down in the dumps, you might also feel regretful if you never got to say something important to your loved one. 

Or, at some level, you might experience feelings of totality or completion because you remember all the happy memories you made with that loved one. Feelings can be rather complicated.

Plant Feelings vs. Animal Feelings

While it’s much less obvious whether plants have feelings or emotions, you can usually sense animals’ emotions. Your dog probably starts wagging its tail and panting whenever you’ve got a fresh scoop of dog food ready to pour into the bowl. Those are indications that your dog is feeling excited.

Many other animals experience emotions and feelings. For instance, scientists have measured heart rate increases among black bears who encounter cars and other markers of human activity. That shows that black bears, just like humans, have rapid heartbeats when they’re feeling stressed.

Do Plants Have Emotions?

So, are plants emotional? Not in the way humans experience complex emotions like fear, sadness, or happiness. 

Plants lack a limbic system, which is the connection of brain structures chiefly responsible for developing thoughts, memories, and emotions after being exposed to stimuli. However, it’s not quite accurate to say that plants have no reactions to stimuli.

How Plants Use Feelings to Survive & Communicate

Despite the fact that plants don’t seem to have emotions or feelings, they’re not unlike animals and humans in that they have innate responses to help ensure their survival.

In simple terms, plants often know when something negative is happening to them (although they don’t actually feel pain).

Sending messages across plant and fungi species

Plants have friends. They routinely pass along messages to other plants and fungi through the dirt.

In addition to sharing essential substances like carbon and phosphorus, some plants send signals to other plants when they are being eaten. It’s not exactly a distress signal, but it’s something along the lines of, “Heads up, we might be on some herbivore’s menu today.”

Reacting to stressors and warning others

Accordingly, plants emit chemicals that their evolution has told them are helpful to emit in certain situations. Do you love the smell of a freshly cut yard? That smell is actually the chemical emissions of grass that help it grow back and reduce the chances of contracting a sickness. 

Becoming great listeners – literally

Plants don’t just receive communications from other plants. For instance, some plants will naturally start growing their roots toward the sound of rushing water. Some flowers also begin producing sweeter nectar when they “hear” the sound of bees buzzing.

The Verdict: Do Plants Have Feelings? In a Way!

So, do plants have emotions or feelings? Sort of. They respond to stimuli and perceived threats, but only for the purposes of self-preservation. 

As far as we can tell, plants are not capable of feeling fear or other complex emotions. And, please be reassured: plants do not feel pain.

Now that you know this information, how do you feel? After assessing our own feelings, we came to the conclusion that plants, like all living beings, should be respected and preserved to the furthest reasonable extent. 

While you certainly shouldn’t feel guilty about eating your fruits and veggies, we were quite struck by the ability of plants to look out for each other and thrive in harmony. We think there’s a lesson in there somewhere.

Featured image via Canva