In article , Sacha
writes
Do you remember there was something written about experiments in this line?
Was it in The Secret Life of Plants? I seem to recall something about a
scientist burning the leaf of a plant with a cigarette and then the plant
was hooked up to electrodes to register its 'reactions'. When the same man
entered the room again there was - apparently - a distinct reaction from the
plant. I may not be remembering this very clearly but it was along those
lines.

'The Secret Life of Plants' was compiled by Peter Tompkins and
Christopher Bird in 1973. It was published by Allen Lane for Penguin
Books as ISBN 0 7139 0594 8. Though it quoted an exhaustive bibliography
of scientific and non-scientific material it was seen as a somewhat
tongue in cheek attempt to open up the subject of plant feelings.
Reading it put me firmly in the pro Plant life/rights/feelings camp.

This group conducted a very comprehensive discussion begun by me of the
issues involved in [IIRC] late 1997 under the title 'A Philospohical
Approach'. I learned much from that long thread about gardeners'
reactions to the idea of plants having feelings, but little firm
evidence one way or the other about the OT. Little seems to have changed
since then.
--
Alan & Joan Gould - North Lincs.