Reiki Plant Update: The Zinnias at Day 47

I did not know what to expect when I started my (somewhat) scientific, second round of the Reiki Plant Experiments. I sowed the "Envy" zinnias on July 7.

July 7, 2014, Non-Reiki on L, Reiki on R, MR

 Five seeds were planted per pot. Each pot has received identical care except for daily Reiki treatments for the Reiki pot (R), and no treatments for the Non-Reiki (NR) pot. During early growth, the Reiki pot had plants that were growing closer together than the NR plants:

NR pot above, R pot below, MR

Here they are at Day 44:

Non-Reiki pot on L, Reiki pot on R. Aug 23, 2014, MR

Here are the stats: Non-Reiki Zinnias-- 4 healthy plants total, one dying. Tallest plant is 10cm from soil base to apical meristem, and 7cm across widest leaf pair. Reiki Zinnias, 7 healthy plants, tallest plant is 10cm from soil base to apical meristem, 8cm across for widest leaf pair.

Seven plants? That's just plain darned weird. When the sixth plant showed up, I assumed I had miscounted the seeds and sown an extra. I am still assuming this. But a week later, when the seventh showed up, I was pretty dumbfounded. Zinnia seeds are large, and I had counted and sown carefully. I really don't think I could have goofed up that badly. During the next round, I will have two people carefully count the seeds and observe the sowing to avoid any confusion. I will probably grow peas or beans, which have seeds far too large to miscount. So we'll work this little mystery out on the next round!

(And, as a note, the pots in the above photo are not in their normal places, they are posing on a box. They get identical sunshine time on a special shelf in the house.)

I hope any other gardeners doing this Reiki Plant Experiment will chime in with their results!

Reiki: Good for Plants?

I finished my Level 2 Reiki training last year, and I'm thoroughly enjoying my new practice. Reiki is a Japanese-derived (now international) form of stress reduction, healing, and relaxation. Reiki has been around for nearly a century now. It's primarily used with people and sometimes animals, in homes, clinics, and hospitals. Some practitioners have been using Reiki in their gardens, but there's been no research on plant Reiki that I can find.

Morikami Japanese Gardens, Delray Beach, Florida, MR

I'm thinking of developing a research project, as controlled as possible given that it won't be done in a lab, that looks for a possible correlation between Reiki and plant growth/ health. Tillies seem like a good choice for subjects, as they are small, portable, and don't involve dirt.

Are there any other Reiki practitioners who also garden out there who'd like to try along with me, once I develop a home-based protocol? Could be interesting!

If you're curious and want to get involved, let me know!