Scientific explanation - Controlled growth

Our cereals belong to the grass family. Their stalks grow in vegetation zones from the plant's nodes. These are the soft, light-coloured points on the stem that are covered and supported by leaf sheaths.

If a stalk is bent when it is green and thus still in its growth phase, you will notice the bent stalk starting to grow vertically upwards from the next node after a few days.

The bend in the stalk moved it away from its optimum angle of light incidence. The node begins to correct the angle and starts to grow more vigorously on the side now facing the light. The plant rights itself again so that the ear points towards the sun.

If the plant is bent – by the wind or heavy rain, for example – after it has completed its growth phase and is already brown and dry, the plant can no longer straighten itself up and the harvest will be at risk.