+41 Turns out that the smell of freshly cut grass is the grasses way of letting the other grass know that there's danger coming. So the beautiful aroma of freshly cut grass is actually a billion screams for help. amirite?

by Pzemlak 1 week ago

"If trees could scream, would we be so cavalier about cutting them down? We might, if they screamed all the time, for no good reason." ~Jack Handy

by Anonymous 1 week ago

So many gems that man gave us, and this is one of my favorites.

by mdavis 1 week ago

He just made that person and quote up. - Satans

by Anonymous 1 week ago

Thanks nubbles

by Piper20 1 week ago

It doesn't really make sense. Like what is warning the other grass going to accomplish? lol unless maybe it tells them to conserve energy for regrowth or something.

by Brilliant-Tap-8082 1 week ago

Some plants do sent signals like this. It could call in a predator to eat the pest, or signal to other plants to start making defensive things, some plants actually become bitter after sensing other plants getting eaten. It's weird and awesome, but it's not all plants, and almost certainly not plain old grass.

by CalligrapherSalty 1 week ago

I can't say I'd be thrilled at you eating my friends either....

by Anonymous 1 week ago

But would you cover yourself in say motor oil to reduce your flavor?

by CalligrapherSalty 1 week ago

"that doesn't really make sense" Unless -insert way it makes sense- Hmm..

by Stiedemannelsie 1 week ago

Their screams bring us comfort.

by Anonymous 1 week ago

Yeah, what evolutionary advantage would grass have knowing danger is coming? Tf they gonna do! walk away?

by Ophelia96 1 week ago

Exactly lmao

by Rude_Young 1 week ago

If nearby grass has a way of detecting the smell, those alerted grasses could theoretically pull nutrients back out of the blades into the roots. Theoretically.

by Anonymous 1 week ago

If they die the same thing happens no

by Ophelia96 1 week ago

Depends. If they die by getting eaten (which was probably the scenario when they evolved this), presumably those nutrients will be moved elsewhere, and provide for the growth of a different individual grass.

by Anonymous 1 week ago

Or that it can't tell the difference between being cut by a blade and cut by teeth, and by "giving" that warning to the rest of the grass they plan on trying to be too bitter to convince a would be grass eater to not eat them.

by Keelylebsack 1 week ago

Even trees talk about the za

by Anonymous 1 week ago

It was just the first thing google showed. I've read it several times through many years. The only one I remember is an African tree though. When the herbivores start eating, they send signals in different forms. I might be mistaken on this fact, but I recall they could send those signals/pheromones/whatever as far as 50-100 meters. Would love for you to correct me wrong though. Don't want to misinform - we got enough of that as is online.

by Mireya06 1 week ago

I'd argue that sending hormones/other that alters others physiology would be communicating. Very much so. I never said they were sentient, but clearly they pick up on signals and hence communicate to some extent. Thanks for your reply & link.

by Mireya06 1 week ago

As a serious answer, usually they would be screaming because something (caterpillars for example) was eating them. So the scream attracts caterpillar predators.

by arnoldohuel 1 week ago

I have no source, but I've read somewhere that it's not for other grasses but animals and insects.

by Ok_Contribution_919 1 week ago

They're just gonna start renting space out to Dandelions.

by Anonymous 1 week ago

There are plenty of articles on plant communication on various scientific journal sites. This WaPo article discussed it with references, and the Wikipedia article on plant communication discusses it as well. Some plants can release chemicals that make their leaves unattractive to insects, others can grow towards or away from attractants or repellants, etc. The actual communication can be above ground as discussed here, or done via the Wood Wide Web. Some can even produce ultrasonic sounds that other organisms such as insects can hear. Also worth noting is that plants actually can move. They typically just do it slowly, with some exceptions, such as sunflowers, Venus fly trap, and others. See tropism. Moving towards the sun, away from damage, based on chemicals, magnetic fields, gravity, etc.

by Anonymous 1 week ago

All that and still no proof to OP's claim.

by Anonymous 1 week ago

The documentary The Happening

by fshields 1 week ago

Humans have evolved to have a certain reaction to the smell and often sight of blood. I don't mean pass out I mean have a certain level of emotional excitement w/out training. I think many adults lost the finer sense of smell they used to have but the smell of blood is deeply unpleasant.

by Anonymous 1 week ago

Yeah I honestly prefer other nature smells than freshly cut grass. Flowers, petrichor, moss, mulch actually smells pretty nice but depends what type.

by Hillary27 1 week ago

Petrichor goes hard, ngl

by Anonymous 1 week ago

Right? As someone allergic to grass, "beautiful" is not how I would describe that aroma

by Swiftmekhi 1 week ago

lol lazy and your lawn is ugly

by Educational-Let7827 1 week ago

I don't think grass understands the concept of help. What should the other grass do?

by Anonymous 1 week ago

Harden into spikes

by Anonymous 1 week ago

A grassy version of groot. GrassRoot if you will

by Lwalker 1 week ago

What is the grass supposed to do, run away?

by Anonymous 1 week ago

I've heard with trees, its more like saying man down. So the system knows not to send nutrients that way. Supposedly multiple trees root systems can be connected and they communicate.

by MycologistWise 1 week ago

It's supposed to form a shield wall. Brace!

by sylvestermcclur 1 week ago

Have you seen The Happening?

by jermain21 1 week ago

Sounds fake. What could the evolutionary benefit be for that? Sounds like one if those made up 'facts' that have no proof.

by Braxton04 1 week ago

The only thing that I believe to be true about the smell of cut grass is that it's also released when bugs eat the grass. Dragonflies prey on those bugs, so when you cut the grass, you'll see a ton of confused dragonflies buzzing around trying to find bugs to eat.

by FinancialImplement61 1 week ago

Why would grass need to let other grass know that danger is coming lmao this is BS.

by Fun-Care 1 week ago

Plants are weird my friend. All plants have some sort of chemical warning signal. In fact tomatoes and cabbage release similar compounds whenever they get damaged by caterpillars that attract predatory wasps.

by Hillary27 1 week ago

Yes I'm aware that it CAN happen, and especially when talking about plants releasing chemicals that have certain effects on insects - sure. But the idea that grass is warning other grass that it's about to get cut... what purpose would that serve? Grass can't react. Yes more complex plants might react by releasing defensive chemicals or reallocating nutrients from vulnerable areas but grass is just grass.

by Fun-Care 1 week ago

Grass cant react. You're killing me haha

by Historical-Length 1 week ago

The grass doesn't know the difference between getting cut and being eaten by an animal/insect

by Anonymous 1 week ago

I don't think anyone is debating that chemicals are being released. Humans can smell those chemicals, that's the smell of the cut grass. What is up for debate is if the chemical is in any way a "warning" to other grass, or even less likely, a "cry for help." For it to be classified as a warning to other grass, we would have to see some experimental data showing that grass is capable of not only releasing that chemical, but detecting when that chemical is nearby and reaponding in some way. Obviously it doesn't get up and run away. But does it maybe release some other chemical in response? Or redirect its nuteient use in some way? Or put a stronger focus on root growth? And to realistically say that it is a "cry for help", we would have to see not only that grass responds in some way to that chemical, but specifically that it responds in some way that would be beneficial to the nearby grass that got cut and released the chemical. Maybe releasing some nutrient back into the soil? I'm not saying one way or the other if this happens with grass that has been cut. Only that it's a claim I haven't seen any evidence to supoort, and especially the "cry for help" part seems likely sensationalist rather than factual.

by kreigerlilly 1 week ago

it's so the other grass can get its affairs in order

by Anonymous 1 week ago

Duck and cover

by Remarkable_Stable 1 week ago

The cry of the carrots. To us, it is the harvest, but to them it is the holocaust! That was a fun Tool album.

by Anonymous 1 week ago

Ever hear "Carrot Juice is Murder" by The Arrogant Worms?

by Few_Statistician 1 week ago

Who?

by Anonymous 1 week ago

It's a Canadian band from the 90's (to present).

by Few_Statistician 1 week ago

And I guess they do it only to make the other grass plants aware of the impending doom, and so they can make their peace? Because it's not like the grass will get up and run, nor burrow in the ground, nor deploy solar lasers So in a way that's a bit of a jerk move. We're talking about chemicals released when the grass blade's larger structural integrity is compromised, so this mechanism wouldn't trigger in the event of biological hazards (to which I can imagine the grass could well prepare a response if warned). Something doesn't add up, we could certainly use some source

by Eveum 1 week ago

It lets the other grass know that it's time to kill Mark Wahlberg, which the grass was ready to do anyway

by mdavis 1 week ago

The same would happen from an animal eating the grass instead of a lawnmower cutting it. Maybe when they get the signal they do something to taste less tasty?

by Anonymous 1 week ago

And now that they've been warned, what are they gonna do? Run away?

by Pretty-Beat-816 1 week ago

How does the grass smell? 👃

by Anonymous 1 week ago

It smells like football practice to me.

by Anonymous 1 week ago

Without doing any research, I ask: what's the other grass going to do about it?

by Worried-Biscotti255 1 week ago

OP, put the bong down and go to sleep

by Anonymous 1 week ago

And what is the other grass going to do about it? Run?

by Cwest 1 week ago

What about the smells of Oatmeal, Apple Pie, Pussy, and Thunderstorm?

by Anonymous 1 week ago

Smiley day to ya!

by Anonymous 1 week ago

Bidet to you, too.

by Anonymous 1 week ago

Dartmouth researchers found that maple trees tend to produce defensive compounds like tannin in the presence of plants whose leaves are damaged. This proves the plant communication. Later it is found that Acacia trees, when eaten by Antelopes and conditions are tough, emits a compound that signals all Acacia trees in immediate surroundings to produce high levels of tannin fast enough and high enough that it can kill the Animal that eats their leaves. The more damage the tree suffers, the higher levels of tannins it produces as well. Grass doesn't like being food as well. Evolution gives it defenses that it will continue to grow as you mow or being grazed (I forgot the term). Another trick is that it sucks up so much silica from soil that it makes itself a sandpaper, wearing down the teeth of grazing animals. That's how you can guess the age of a cow by looking at its teeth.

by Anonymous 1 week ago

imagine if we can hear this, will we still care mowing the lawn or trimming the plants

by Anonymous 1 week ago

Grass can't smell it's just grass juice that makes a smell.

by Anonymous 1 week ago

Fresh cut grass smells like chores

by Anonymous 1 week ago

The dying grass smell is a precursor to the airborne toxin from The Happening. The "smell" isn't for other grass; it's for us

by eschoen 1 week ago

Aren't there trees in the savanna that also do this when they get eaten, so all the leafs of all the other trees start to taste sour?

by Separate-Mortgage 1 week ago

Beautiful aroma... That is the abysmal scent of death and decay. The way it makes my nose and eyes itch and water is hellfire on earth.

by Anonymous 1 week ago

It turns out we can understand monsters/aliens/psychopaths after all. They get off on human screams and us the screams of grass and other nonhuman entities

by Icy-Engineering-9342 1 week ago

It's not really for awareness, but just stress in general. The mix of chemicals let off the aroma once the grass has been punctured and those chemicals can be released I the air. Other plants do it too, grass is just cut in such a large quantity that we can detect it super easy

by Striking-Film 1 week ago

You've never even seen that! -Nick

by Anonymous 1 week ago

I hate it. Always smelled like death to me.

by Parking-Sale-2405 1 week ago

The next time I cut my yard, I will make sure to loudly proclaim "death is in the air, can you smell it!" Who knows what the neighbors will do

by Anonymous 1 week ago

Wouldn't it be a billion farts for help?

by Much-Spread 1 week ago

You just made me enjoy it more.

by Sorry_Purpose 1 week ago

Da fuq are the other grasses gonna do with that info? Move to another field?

by Anonymous 1 week ago

I felt a disturbance in the grass. As if a million blades suddenly cried out in terror and were suddenly silenced. I fear something terrible has happened. - Growbi Wan Kenobi

by Anonymous 1 week ago

Why would grass alert for danger, what can grass do about impending danger? I'm sure this is wrong and the smell is simply what happens when you destroy plants and aerosolize liquids/matter from the plant and prolonged evaporation of moisture from the plants open wounds.

by Pale-Consequence-730 1 week ago

"Bro, watch out. Someone with a mower" "Mate, I'm grass. What can I do with this information?"

by Anonymous 1 week ago

Reminds me of a convo i had with a friend about how horrifying lawn care would be if plants could talk.

by Anonymous 1 week ago

I claim bs, what's the other grass gonna do about the danger information? run away? there's 0 evolutionary benefit to this claim

by Square-Orange 1 week ago

What good does it do the rest of the grass to keep ow there is danger? It's not like it can get out of the way.

by Anonymous 1 week ago

It's not true, the smell is a gas that is released from bacteria that is in the soil, the water pushes out the gas

by Anonymous 1 week ago

And he brought me into a vast farmlands of our own Midwest And as we descended cries of impending doom rose from the soil One thousand nay a million voices full of fear And terror possessed me then And I begged Angel of the Lord what are these tortured screams? And the angel said unto me These are the cries of the carrots, the cries of the carrots! You see, Reverend Maynard Tomorrow is harvest day and to them it is the holocaust And I sprang from my slumber drenched in sweat Like the tears of one million terrified brothers and roared "Hear me now, I have seen the light! They have a consciousness, they have a life, they have a soul! Damn you! Let the rabbits wear glasses! Save our brothers! Can I get an amen? Can I get a hallelujah? Thank you Jesus

by Big_Forever_8441 1 week ago

So what do other grass 'do' with that information? They sense the smell, and then what? Does something change? Do they adapt in any way? What's the point?

by Anonymous 1 week ago

Does it also warn its neighbors when cows come munching thru?

by Responsible-Dog-6007 1 week ago

Grass is not sentient

by Anonymous 1 week ago

I wouldn't call it a beautiful aroma

by Ok_Helicopter_6354 1 week ago

Nerd. The headline is framed as a victim fetish fan fiction. Too much fetish bait seeking validation.

by Anonymous 1 week ago

What is the other grass supposed to do? run away?

by priscilla56 1 week ago

How did this "turn out"? Grasses don't have olfactory receptors.

by jschultz 1 week ago

Flares up my asthma. So it's actually fighting back.

by pfefferofelia 1 week ago

I assumed it was to summon predators, us/wolves/bears/big cats, so that we could scare off the grazing herbivores.

by Anonymous 1 week ago

Doesn't seem likely to me. I actually think grass quite likes being cut down and trampled because it's so much better at recovering from it than the other plants it is competing with. It's one of the reasons it's so colossally successful.

by mcdermottdomeni 1 week ago

Their screams smell so good

by Towneofelia 1 week ago

As if Billions of voices suddenly cried out in terror and then were suddenly silenced.

by Anonymous 1 week ago

Yeah once I was starting to mow the grass but then the rest of the grass just ran away.

by Anonymous 1 week ago

I mean.... doesn't that make it even better?

by Anonymous 1 week ago

Grass does not smell good though. What kind of gross monster likes that smell? And that's coming from someone who regularly gets called a monster.

by Anonymous 1 week ago

And the angel of the lord came unto me Snatching me up from my place of slumber And took me on high and higher still Until we moved to the spaces betwixt the air itself And he brought me into a vast farmlands of our own Midwest And as we descended cries of impending doom rose from the soil One thousand nay a million voices full of fear And terror possessed me then And I begged Angel of the Lord what are these tortured screams? And the angel said unto me These are the cries of the carrots, the cries of the carrots! You see, Reverend Maynard Tomorrow is harvest day and to them it is the holocaust And I sprang from my slumber drenched in sweat Like the tears of one million terrified brothers and roared "Hear me now, I have seen the light! They have a consciousness, they have a life, they have a soul! Damn you! Let the rabbits wear glasses! Save our brothers! Can I get an amen? Can I get a hallelujah? Thank you Jesus

by cecelia89 1 week ago

Hopefully they can run away fast enough , otherwise it's a massacre!

by Few_Love9950 1 week ago

What exactly is the other grass supposed to do with that information?

by Anonymous 1 week ago

It also makes trees and plants make better and riper fruit. It puts it in a survival type mechanism. Farmers do this in Apple Orchards for example. They'll stab a tree or something to that effect.

by Visible-Suspect5589 1 week ago

What is the grass supposed to do with that information? Run?

by Lmarquardt 1 week ago

What are they gonna do about it? Run away?

by OccasionHappy 1 week ago

Would would grass have to talk about, except for the consistency of squirrel droppings?

by Anonymous 1 week ago

It actually helps the grass grow stronger and thicker. So, nope!

by Severe_Simple_459 1 week ago

This is false pop-sci nonsense. Plants do not feel pain or fear.

by Anonymous 1 week ago

Sounds like vegan mythology.

by Anonymous 1 week ago

I'm allergic to grass. That beautiful aroma makes me gag, you murderers!

by Anonymous 1 week ago