I talk to plants... and so can you!
A few years ago I had the absolute pleasure of harvesting a local Reishi mushroom.
In May 2020 I discovered these beauties beginning to grow on an overturned tree along one of my favorite walking trails in the woods near my house. I've come across wild Reishi only a few other times so I was overjoyed to see at least a dozen mushrooms growing.
I began checking in with my Reishi friends when I went hiking, watching them grow and change color from a dull brownish to this vibrant rust orange with yellow along the edges. That color scheme is a 1970's vintage loving dream!
If you research online you'll learn that Reishi is known as the The Mushroom of Immortality due to its anti-cancer and immune system supporting constituents. It is also an adaptogen, helping the body to regulate its response to stress + supporting the nervous system. But with a quick google search you can learn all of that.
I want to tell you about what the Reishi communicated with me directly.
Reishi shared with me that one of its many abilities is to strengthen + amplify what is already deep within. Reishi brings your vitality to the surface, infuses it into your whole being, gives you an exuberant glow. True, deep, radical self empowerment.
Now THAT is the medicine that I want to bring into my being!
I have been feeling drawn to Reishi for a while now, I even bought a tincture a while back at an herbalism conference. But for whatever reason it didn't make its way into my daily, or even weekly, self care practice.
I think I was just waiting to find my friend. My own mushroom ally to share with me EXACTLY the medicine that I need.
Do you want to learn how to talk to and communicate with plants? Great! Keep reading!
Below are the basics of plant (or other than human) being communication as I experience and practice. This can be done with any plant including herbs, houseplants, vegetables, and weeds growing around where you live.
The first step is just acknowledging that plants are multifaceted + multidimensional beings just like you! They experience life differently than we do but they have consciousness and the ability to communicate with us and each other. The way that plants convey information is different from plant to plant and person to person but I have found that plants will communicate with you in a way that you understand. I feel sensorial pulls or pushes in my body and hear the plants talking to me as human-ish voices in my head. Some people might see images or colors, have old memories brought up, or see a version of what the plant would look like as a human or other kind of being. It's totally different for everyone!
It is most helpful if you already have a daily (or almost daily) meditation practice. When you meditate by yourself you learn what your resting state is, what feels + sounds like you, what feels like source, what feels like the earth. So then when you invite a new being into the conversation (like reishi, or lemon balm, or onion) you know when they are speaking to you because you recognize the voice or sensation as different then when you're meditating alone. The more you practice meditating, the clearer it becomes who you are speaking with or to.
So now you've found the plant you want to communicate with, awesome! Take a seat beside them. Take a few minutes to center and ground yourself. Feel into your body, mind, emotions. Let your body be heavy resting upon the earth. Feel roots growing down into the earth from your feet, legs, hips, bum, whatever is connected to Gaia. Come into a peaceful meditative state. Have patience + compassion for yourself! Some days this is much easier than others.
After you've calmed + centered your body and your mind simply invite the plant into conversation. You can talk out loud or in your head, I do both. But you might not even use words. You might communicate with your heart, sharing feelings and other sensations that defy spoken language. The plant might be very chatty very quickly or it might take a while to sense its energetic presence. Don't give up! "Nothing" might happen the first few times. You might try another plant, strengthen your personal meditation practice, or embrace the affirmation that plant communication will happen when you + the plant are ready.
Listen! Listen with your whole heart, your whole mind, your whole being! In my experience plants have a lot to share, they are so glad that you are listening and spending reciprocal time with them! We have evolved with these magical beings. We are here for them and they are here for us. Most plants that grow abundantly, like the "weeds" around your yard, want to interact with you. They're showing up on your doorstep for a reason. Ask them what that reason is and really listen to what they have to say.
When you are through communicating, thank the plant for its presence and time (although I'm quite sure they experience time completely differently than we do.) Ask the plant how you can support it going forward, if there is anything they would like you to do. Don't make empty promises here! If the plant asks for something and you agree to it, then follow through.
This practice not only allows you to have vibrant relationships with other than humans (if you have a pet you undoubtably know this already) but it shows you that everything around us is alive, has its own wisdom + experience. We ARE NOT the only sentient beings in this world.
Do you talk to plants? Comment below and tell me what messages they've shared! I would LOVE to know!