Scientists say plants 'scream' when stressed
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READING:
Plant lovers help plants grow by talking to them. Scientists from Israel believe plants may be able to talk back. Researchers found that plants make sounds like a human scream when they are stressed. We may be able to interpret the sounds and give plants what they need. However, the sounds are too high for the human ear to hear. We can only hear frequencies of up to 16 kilohertz. Plants make sounds up to 250 kilohertz.
The research was done in an acoustic chamber. Scientists found that stressed tomato plants create sound waves. A researcher said: "Each plant and each type of stress is associated with a specific identifiable sound." She said animals and insects could hear the sounds. If humans understood these sounds, they could help us understand when plants and crops need water. Farmers could water their fields more efficiently and save water.
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