Psychological Reports, 1979, 45, 381-382.

@ Psychological Reports 1979

EFFECT OF HOLY WATER O N THE GROWTH OF RADISH PLANTS

SANDRA LENINGTOW
University of Santa Clara

Summary.-Mean growth of 12 radish seeds in peat pots watered with

holy water were not significantly different from that of 12 watered with tap
water. Limitations on data were listed.

In recent years there has been increased interest in the scientific study of
unseen forces and the possible effects of these forces on matter. Canon William
V. Rauscher, for example, has reported that canna plants given holy water left
over from use in religious services grew more than three times higher than canna
plants which were not given holy water (7, p. 38). In the present experiment,
the author tried to duplicate Canon Rauscher's observations under more rigorous
conditions. The hypothesis is that in blessing holy wacer, some energy or power
is transferred to it. If true, plants given holy water might grow faster and bigger
than plants watered with tap water.
To test the hypothesis, 24 3-in. peat pots were randomly assigned to two
trays. Each pot was filled to 1 in. from the top with potting soil. One radish
seed was dropped in the middle of each pot, and the pot was then filled to within
1/2 in. of the top. Every other pot received 1% oz. of holy wacer, enough to
soak the soil, as recommended on seed packet. The holy water was obtained
from a local church which has the same source of water as the tap water. The
holy water was stored in an aluminum container in the church and was collected
and kept in a glass jar. At no point was it couched by human hands, nor were
any chemicals added. The cap wacer was also collected and kept in a glass jar
next to the holy water. Two identical watering cans were used to water the
plants. The alternate pots received 1% oz. of tap water, every other day for
three weeks, they were kept in front of a window in a 70' room. They were
then removed from their pots and were measured in centimeters from root to
shoot by a scorer blind to treatment.
The mean length of the plants watered with holy water was 12.6 cm. (SD
= 2.10), and the mean length of the plants watered with tap water was 12.2 cm.
(SD = 3.6). A one-tailed t test gave a value of .32 which is short of 1.717 for
significance at the .05 level. There is no significant difference in the growth
rates of these radish plants given holy water versus radish plants given tap water
( t = .32, df = 2 2 ) .
This study does not support Canon Rauscher's observations on the effec-
tiveness of holy water in increasing the growth rate of plants. There are two
differences in the present experiment which may be important to consider.
'1721 Edgewood Drive, Palo Alto, CA 94303.
382 S. LENINGTON

Since Canon Rauscher believed in the power of holy water, he may have directly
influenced the growth rate of his plants by his belief. There are numerous docu-
mented studies showing that positive or negative belief will either benefit or
adversely affect plant growth (1, 2, 6, 8 ) . The author had no expectations
concerning the outcome.
The second major difference is that in all previously reported studies with
holy water or water which had been prayed for, the water was held during the
prayer or before it was used (3, 4 ) . Canon Rauscher's holy water was left over
from religious rites, which meant he had to have dipped his hands in it. In the
present study, however, the water was not touched as it was blessed. Is the
"laying on of hands" necessary or helpful for a transfer of energy to take place?
Further work to check differences in growth rates of plants given prayer while
being touched versus plants given prayer alone might prove interesting.
The present experiment would have been more convincing if the person
doing the watering did not know which plants were receiving holy water and
which plants were receiving tap water. Another uncontrolled factor was storage
of holy water in an aluminum container. While the holy water is changed
weekly, it was necessarily older and had been sitting a little longer than the tap
water. Future studies would be improved were such factors controlled.
REFERENCES
1. DE LA WARR,M. Thought transference to plants. News Letter, Radionic Center
Organization, 1969. 3-11.
2. GRAD,B. A telekinetic effect on plant growth. lnternational Journal of Parapsy-
chology, 1963, 5, 117-133.
3. GRAD, B. A telekinetic effect on plant growth: 11. Ex riments involving treatment
of saline in stoppered bottles. International J o u r n a ~ o Parapsychology,
f 1964, 6,
473-498.
4. GRAD, B. Some biological effects of the 'laying on of hands': a review of experiments
with animals and plants. Journal of the American Society for Psychical Research,
1965, 59, 95-127.
5. ISAAC,S. Handbook in research and evalrtation. San Diego, CA: EdITS Publ., 1978.
6. LOEHR,REV.F. The power o f prayer on plants. New York: Signet, 1969.
7. OSTRANDBR. S., & SCHROEDER, L. Handbook o f PSI discoveries. New York: Put-
nam, 1974.
8. VASSE, D., & VASSE.P. Influence de la pensee sur la croissance des 'plantes. Revue
metapsychique, 1950, 12 (Nouvelle serie), 28-30.

Accepted August 20, 1979.