Chapter 1
The daily dance of heliotropism
Chapter 2
The internal clock and growth hormones
Chapter 3
Why follow the sun
Chapter 4
The global journey of the sunflower
YOUR GOAL
Master of How sunflowers follow the sun
Ch 2 · The internal clock and growth hormones
artiteacher Circadian Rhythms and Plant Growth
Running on my inner clock, growing on the east side to bend toward you.
artiteacher Sunflowers rely on a circadian rhythm to anticipate the sun's movements.
BETA
artiteacher Drag the flashlight to discover how sunflowers track the sun across the sky.
Fun Fact
Fake sun experiment: When scientists placed sunflowers under fixed artificial lights, the plants kept tracking an imaginary sun for days.
Glossary
auxin (noun)
An organic substance that regulates plant growth and development by promoting cell elongation. In 2016, UC Davis researchers demonstrated how this compound drives the plant's daily movement toward light.
An organic substance that regulates plant growth and development by promoting cell elongation. In 2016, UC Davis researchers demonstrated how this compound drives the plant's daily movement toward light.
Quiz
What percentage of biomass did sunflowers lose when they were prevented from tracking the sun?
Quiz
What happened when scientists kept sunflowers under constant, unchanging artificial light?