Curious fox Fox discovers, through clever experiments, the secret of how seeds know to grow upwards and root downwards, and uses this knowledge to help the kindergarten's bean sprouts.
At the edge of the forest lived a little fox named Fox. He was curious about everything in the world, especially the 'whys'. Why do stars twinkle? Why does a rainbow appear after rain? Today, his question was: 'A tiny seed is buried in the soil, surrounded by darkness. How does it know which way is the sky to grow upwards, and which way is the earth to root downwards?' Fox shouldered his beloved all-purpose toolkit and decided to find the answer.
Fox took out a plump pea seed from his toolkit. 'Let's start with planting!' He found several flowerpots of the same size and filled them with soft soil. But this time, he wasn't simply planting the seed. He had a special idea: he was going to 'test' the seed. Fox wanted to know, if he deliberately placed the seed in the wrong direction, could it still find the right way? Thinking about this experiment, Fox excitedly wagged his fluffy big tail.
Fox made three special 'observation dark boxes'. They were little houses made of thick cardboard, with only a small window at the top to let in light. In the first dark box, Fox planted the seed normally, with its pointed end facing up. In the second dark box, he placed the seed sideways. The most interesting was the third one, where he planted the seed upside down, with the pointed end facing down! 'Hehe, let's see what you do now.' Fox carefully placed the dark boxes side by side on the windowsill, where there was plenty of sunlight.
Over the next few days, Fox opened the dark boxes to check several times a day. The first day, it was quiet. The second day, still no movement. He was getting a little anxious, but then he remembered his mother saying, 'Patience is the first step of discovery.' So, he learned to wait patiently, spraying a little water on the soil every day and then peeking through the small window. Finally, on the morning of the fourth day, Fox made a surprising discovery!
The seed in the first dark box had sprouted! The tender green stem grew straight up, towards the light coming through the small window at the top. And the roots? Fox gently brushed away a little soil and found thin white roots obediently burrowing deep into the earth. The sideways seed in the second box had also sprouted. Its stem made a small bend and then also diligently turned towards the light, while the roots curved towards the soil. Fox quickly took out his little notebook and carefully drew these discoveries.
What surprised Fox the most was the third dark box! The seed that had been planted upside down—its sprout had actually made a big bend in the soil, went around the seed's body, and, with difficulty but determination, pushed upwards through the soil surface to seek the light. And its roots grew in the opposite direction, downwards. 'Amazing!' Fox exclaimed, 'No matter how I place them, the stem always seeks the light, and the roots always seek the earth!'
Fox understood that plants have two great abilities: 'phototropism' and 'gravitropism'. The stem baby loves light, so it grows towards the direction of light. This is called phototropism. The root baby loves darkness and moisture and is also attracted by gravity, so it always grows towards the center of the Earth. This is called gravitropism. Just like we love running into our mother's warm embrace, different parts of a plant also have their own favorite places to go.
Just as Fox was happy about his discovery, his good friend Bunny Hopper came. 'Fox, can you help?' Hopper said, 'The bean sprouts at the kindergarten are growing crooked. They're placed by the window, all leaning towards the outside. Their bodies are slanted, and they look very uncomfortable.' Upon hearing this, Fox immediately shouldered his toolkit: 'No problem, take me to see! Maybe we can use the knowledge we just learned!'
Arriving at the kindergarten's plant corner, Fox saw several rows of bean sprouts all stretching their necks towards the window in unison, their stems tilted, and their leaves crowded to one side. It was indeed because the light from the window came from only one direction. 'We need to let the sunlight shine on them evenly,' Fox thought, 'Or, make the pots move by themselves?' He opened his toolkit and rummaged through it with a clatter.
Fox had a brilliant idea! He was going to make an 'automatic light-adjusting growth stand'. He made a base from wood pieces and installed a flexible rotating bearing in the middle. Then he fixed the small flowerpot on it. The most crucial part was that he set up a small rod on one side of the stand, and at the top of the rod, he made a little 'light-blocking hat' out of black paper. Wherever the shadow of the 'light-blocking hat' fell, that side became the shaded side.
'This light-blocking hat is key,' Fox explained to the kindergarten children gathered around. 'When light is blocked on one side, the stems on that side will think, 'Huh, it's darker here, I need to grow towards the brighter side.' So, as the sun moves across the sky, the flowerpot will slowly rotate by itself because of the different growth rates on each side, allowing every side of the bean sprout to bask in the sun!' The children's eyes sparkled as they listened.
Everyone worked together to install the new stands for each pot of crooked-neck bean sprouts. After adjusting their positions, Fox and the children placed the bean sprouts back on the windowsill. Sunlight shone down, casting clear shadows on the stands. 'Let's observe for a few days!' Fox said. Every day, the children would come to water the bean sprouts and see if there were any changes.
A few days later, a miracle happened! Those bean sprouts that were originally leaning to one side had slowly straightened their backs, growing upright and strong. The leaves were lush green, stretching out in all directions because each side had been bathed in sunlight. The stands also truly adjusted their angles very slowly over time. The children cheered: 'The bean sprouts are standing straight! Fox, you're amazing!'
Fox said to everyone, 'Actually, the seeds and plants themselves are the most amazing. It's their abilities of 'phototropism' and 'gravitropism' that told us how to help them. As long as we observe carefully and understand the 'thoughts' of all things, we can come up with good solutions.' The kindergarten teacher called Fox's invention the 'Little Fox Sun-Seeking Stand' and praised him as a little scientist!
On the way home, the setting sun gilded Fox and his shadow. He touched his toolkit, feeling warm and fulfilled inside. Today, he not only unraveled the mystery of seeds but also used this mystery to help a friend. The world is so interesting, and there are still so many 'whys' waiting for him to discover! Fox hummed a tune, his steps light, looking forward to tomorrow's exploration.
