Phone's For You. It's Your Plant.

Today, Talking Plants is all about talking plants.

Hi. It's the ivy. I'm desperately in need of a drink. Do you think you could find it in your heart to maybe water me, a little? Thanks.

I kid you not. An ivy at NYU has learned to talk. Or should I say kvetch. And he has emboldened a chorus of plants to line up and call home.

Hello. This is the lithops? # 002? I'm really thirsty and I don't feel good. Could you please water me and do it enough so that my soil is soaked? Thank you!

Introducing Botanicalls, giving voice to the houseplants you continue NOT to see. As if limp, shriveled leaves didn't scream loud enough, four very clever NYU graduate students have given several plant genera a way to tell you exactly what they need.

Hi. This is sweet basil. I've been getting a lot of light recently. Too much! Could you move me away from the window a bit? Maybe some other plant can take my place for a while?

A cute gimmick? My first thought, too, until I spoke at length just yesterday with one of the Botanicall's very thoughtful and sincere founders about the hows and whys of the project. Meet Kati London in tomorrow's Talking Plants post.

In the meantime, why not call a lonely NYU plant yourself? By dialing 212.202.8348, you can meet the lithops, among other plants, and find out about its attitude and anatomy in its "own" words.

11:47 AM ET | 07- 2-2007 | permalink

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