[Q] Do plants turn towards the Sun or away?
matson at snowcrest.net
Mon Jul 20 12:17:25 EST 1998
Tim Baker wrote:
> Most plants don't exactly turn towards the sun (except sunflower heads,
> and a few others) - they grow towards it. Not all of phototropism (growing
> towards light) is understood yet.
Many, many plants adjust their leaves to face the sun directly, or even adjust
the angle of their leaves to avoid the direct sun (if more intense than
wanted), often quite rapidly during the day. Amazingly enough also,
sunflowers (when still fairly immature) turn during the night back to facing
east in anticipation of dawn. They are already facing the new sun as it
rises. Plants are so much more active and full of behaviors than we often
give them credit for. G.M.
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