IKEA has recreated an old experiment by Dr. Masaru Emoto in their campaign to Say No to Bullying for Anti-Bullying Day, and the results are shocking.

For the experiment, IKEA displayed two of their Dracaena plants in a school. The two plants were given the same amount of water, fertilizer, and sunlight – the only difference was that one plant was fed looped recordings of negative messages while the other was fed looped recordings of positive messages. Examples of the negative messages were, “You’re not even green,” “Nobody likes you,” “You’re a mistake,” “You’re useless,” “You look rotten,” and “Are you even alive?” School children were able to take part in this experiment by recording their own positive and negative messages.

After 30 days, the side-by-side results of the two plants were surprising, sad, beautiful, and thought-provoking all in one.

The plant on the left was the one that was exposed to negative messages and is brown and wilting after 30 days, as opposed to the plant on the right, which was exposed to positive messages and is obviously thriving.

This experiment on the results of negative words and energy has been recreated and re-imagined many times based on the original water experiments done by Dr. Masaru Emoto in which water was told different names and phrases, frozen, and then photographed. Here are photos of some of those results:

May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and prolonged exposure to bullying can lead to depression, eating disorders, and anxiety, just to name a few. IKEA is goals for this hands-on experiment, and we need more of this if we want future generations to be kind and compassionate in a new world where everyone is connected 24/7 and bullying is as easy as clicking a button.

Watch and share this video and spread kindness around like confetti. All of us, plants included, could use it.