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[Squeaks squeaks] I see what you mean, Squeaks.
Your plants haven’t grown at all.
And you said you plant these in The Fort every year?
[Squeaks Squeaks]
I see…
Hm.
Oh, hi, everyone!
Squeaks was just showing me one of his lettuce plants.
Or… what’s supposed to be a lettuce plant.
He says he’s planted lettuce in The Fort’s greenhouse every year, and it’s gone great!
But this year, something isn’t working.
He’s using the same soil and the same kind of seeds, but his lettuce just won’t grow.
[Squeaks squeaks]
Aw, I’m sorry, Squeaks.
But you know what?
I know a science story that might be able to help.
It’s the story of George Washington Carver, an amazing scientist and inventor who taught people how to take care of their plants.
It’s story time!
George Washington Carver was born around 1865 in Missouri, in the United States.
That was a hard time in the U.S., especially for Black people like George Washington Carver.
That’s because slavery was still allowed in some parts of the country.
Slavery is when someone claims another person as property — like you might own a toy or a piece of clothing.
It wasn’t kind or fair, but it’s a big part of history for the United States.
Enslaved people didn’t have any freedom, so they couldn’t choose what to do,
where to live, or if they could go to school.
Instead, they were forced to do work — almost always without getting paid.
In the U.S., many enslaved people were taken from different parts of Africa, where they used to be free.
Others were taken from Indigenous communities
people who had lived freely in what’s now the United States for thousands of years.
Meanwhile, most enslavers — or people who had slaves — had light-colored skin, and their families came from Europe.
[Squeaks squeaks]
You’re right, Squeaks.
Slavery can be such a hard thing to think about because it was so unfair and unkind.
And eventually, it did become against the law.
But it’s still important to remember — and it’s an important part of this story,
because Mr. Carver was enslaved when he was born.
Thankfully, slavery became illegal in Missouri not too long after that.
But people were still treated unfairly based on the color of their skin.
For example, many schools wouldn’t teach Black students, so when he got older,
Mr. Carver had to travel to lots of different schools to get an education.
But that didn’t stop him!
As a kid, he loved to read books, explore the world around him, and learn about nature
— especially plants!
He also loved to make art and play piano.
And as he got older, he eventually decided to become a scientist.
He went to college and studied farming and how to grow food.
And later, he became a teacher.
Now, one of the biggest lessons he taught people was how to keep their soil —
or the dirt they grow plants in — healthy.
See, for years, people had been planting cotton in their fields.
But that cotton was taking nutrients from the soil.
Nutrients are just things plants and other living things use to grow and stay healthy.
You use nutrients, too, and you get them from your food.
Cotton, though, was using a nutrient called nitrogen.
It’s found in the air you breathe and in the dirt under your feet, and it helps plants grow.
The problem is, since people had been growing cotton for a long time, there wasn’t much nitrogen left!
So the cotton plants weren’t growing.
That’s where Mr. Carver came in.
He taught people how important it was to change the type of plants they grew.
For example, he taught people that if they planted peanuts one year instead of cotton,
the peanut plants would put some of the nitrogen back in the soil.
That’s because peanut plants have a special kind of bacteria on their roots.
Bacteria are creatures so tiny, you’d need a microscope to see them.
There are lots of different kinds of bacteria, and they do different things.
Like, some make your yogurt taste sour, and others can get you sick if they get into your body.
But the bacteria on peanut plants can take nitrogen from the air and put some of it into the soil for plants like cotton to use later.
So in a way, peanut plants could fix the soil!
[Squeaks squeaks]
Oh, what did he do with all those peanuts?
That’s a great question!
Thanks to George Washington Carver, lots of people started growing peanuts and other foods like sweet potatoes.
And Mr. Carver came up with all kinds of ways to use them!
I mean, you can eat those foods, of course.
But Mr. Carver also invented other things made from plants like peanuts.
He made shampoo, lotion, and even medicine made from peanuts.
He didn’t invent peanut butter, though, even though lots of people think he did.
So, Squeaks!
I think there’s a lesson you can learn here about your plants.
If you’ve been planting lettuce every year, your soil might not have a lot of nitrogen left in it.
So, what do you think about planting peanuts this year?
[Squeaks squeaks]
I thought you’d like that idea!
See, this is one reason it’s so important to know about different scientists.
There’s a lot you can learn!
And thanks for joining us, everyone!
If you want to keep learning with us here at The Fort, you can hit the subscribe button.
And we’ll see you next time!
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