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Sing While You Weed Gardeners at an Ann Arbor farm believe that singing to your plants isn't just an old wives tale...it actually works. by Katie Carey Ann Arbor, MI (2008-07-07) The Community Farm of Ann Arbor is financially supported by members in the community...many of whom help like to help around the farm. So the gardeners started something called a "Weed and Sing." It's an informal weeding party where people do just that: they sing while they weed.

For many people, field work is a new thing, so it's kind of a relief to see a giant field of weeds and then see a beautiful woman plopped down in the middle of it singing. If you get overwhelmed with the weeds you can stop weeding and focus in her eyes and sing along.

You know it's funny because I came out here expecting hard labor, and I definitely got a fair share of that, but I didn't expect the pleasantness of it. They remind you through singing you are here because you want to be, not because you have to be.

As far as the benefits to the plants, plants love human care. They love good thoughts. They love tending the soil around them. They love good conversation around them. And I believe they love the singing.

Most of the vegetables that you can think of grow here: lettuce, spinach, green onions. Of course we don't actually only weed or only sing and people's lives and stories and events come popping in and out of the songs and the weeding and that's all part of what we are doing here, too.

I think people have grown very far away from the word "community." I mean, I live in an apartment building with probably 100 other people, and I know 4 of my neighbors. There was a time in our history when we would know every single one of those people. Community farming kind of brings us back to that."

The weeders and singers featured in the story are Anne Elder, Karen Chalmer, and Adam Himton.