The project began with a moodboard that shows the basic Idea of using plants to make or manipulate sound.
Miro was my tool of choice to collect ideas, gather research results and organize the experiments.
While working on the project, I applied to win a Field Kit sensor kit. I did not win but it was worth a try.
The littleBits Synth Kit made it easy to get started with experiments around sensors and synthesizers.
For most of the experiments I used an Arduino Uno which is able to send sensor values to a computer.
The JavaScript library p5.js was my first approach to convert sensor values into sounds. I used electronic detectors as well as the plants themselves as sensors.
One of the devices I experimented with was Papersynth, a modular synthesizer kit developed by Wolfgang Spahn.
Eventually I decided to use the synthesizer software Pure Data to generate sounds.
For another experiment I used the machine learning Software Runway ML to generate sad and happy song lyrics that represent a plant's well-being.
Calatheas are a species of plant that reacts to ambient light so I equipped mine with a photoresistor that measures brightness.
The Sword Fern's sound is influenced by the humidity. The more humid the air, the happier the fern is.
In this experiment, the rocking motion of a hazelnut tree does not only create a rustle of leaves but also a whistling sound. This is influenced by the inclination of the gyro sensor that I have attached to one of the branches.
Just like the fern, the ivy likes a humid climate. That's why its sound is also influenced by humidity.
I set up the Instagram account @avant_garden.project to give the public an insight into the project.
