Pokémon Learning League

Photosynthesis

Written By

Timothy Whitfield

(Episode opens with Ash, Pikachu, Dawn, Piplup, Cilan, Iris and Axew arriving in the Village of Dragons and Iris speaks to Dawn.)

Iris: So, Dawn, what do you think of the Village of Dragons?

Dawn: It’s a nice village. So, this is your hometown, Iris?

Iris: Yep, this is where I was raised and where I got Axew. Everyone around here loves to raise and admire Dragon-type Pokemon.

Axew: Axew.

Dawn: Well, that sounds… interesting.

Piplup: Piplup.

(They keep on walking until they pass by two big statues.)

Dawn: Hey, what are these statues doing here?

Cilan: These are statues of the legendary Pokemon, Reshiram and Zekrom.

Dawn: Wow!

Piplup: Piplup!

Iris: Yeah. The village built these statues to honor them.

Dawn: That’s amazing.

(They continue down the path. A few minutes later, Ash’s stomach grumbles.)

Ash: (chuckles.) Guess I’m a little bit hungry.

(Pikachu’s stomach grumbles, too.)

Pikachu: Pika.

Ash: You’re getting a little hungry, too, huh, buddy?

Iris: I know where we can get something to eat.

(She leads the group off somewhere.)

Ash: Um, Iris, where exactly are you taking us to?

Iris: Well, I know a special garden that grows some of the most delicious berries you’ll ever had.

Axew: Axew.

(When they arrive at the garden, it’s in shambles and all the bushes have no leaves on them.)

Ash: Uh, this is the garden?

Iris: Yes, this is it, but I don’t remember it looking like this before. What could’ve happened?

(As they all think about the situation, a villager passes by them. Iris notices him and runs over to him.)

Villager: Yes, can I help you?

Iris: Excuse me, sir, but could you please tell me what happened to this garden?

Villager: Oh, a mischievous Drilbur was digging around this area and making holes all over the place. It also loved the berries that grew in that garden, so it went through the whole thing looking for berries and eating them.

Iris: Okay, thank you.

(The villager walks away.)

Ash: So, what do we do now?

(They all think for a minute.)

Cilan: Well, we can replant the whole garden.

Iris: That’s a good idea, Cilan. But we don’t have any seeds to plant.

Cilan: Don’t worry about that. I just happen to have some seeds that I saved from the berries we had in our last lunch. (He pulls the seeds out from his pocket.)

Ash: All right, then. Let’s get started.

(They all start replanting the garden. They prepare the soil for planting, then their Pokemon poke little holes in the soil. They place the seeds in the holes, cover them up, put mulch around it, and then water them. A few hours later)

Dawn: That was very hard.

Piplup: Piplup.

Ash: Yeah, but it’s done.

Cilan: It’s going to take a long time for this garden to grow back. So I’ll make us some lunch.

Dawn: That sounds good.

(A few minutes later, everyone is eating their lunch.)

Dawn: Mmm, this is really good.

Ash: Cilan knows how to make a good lunch.

Iris: Yeah, he sure does.

Pikachu: Pikachu.

Piplup: Piplup.

Axew: Axew.

Cilan: Thanks, guys.

Dawn: Guys, I was wondering about something.

Ash: What it is, Dawn?

Dawn: Well, I was wondering how the plants get their energy.

Iris: You know, Dawn, I was thinking the same thing. I think they get their energy from the Sun.

Dawn: Okay, but how do they use the sun to get energy?

Cilan: I don’t know anything about that, Dawn, but I think Siara might know something about this. (He pulls out the Pokepilot and calls Siara.)

Siara: Hey guys, how are things going?

Dawn: Hi, Siara. Iris was just showing me around the Village of Dragons and the things that it has.

Siara: That’s sounds nice. What else is new?

Ash: Iris was just showing us where we can get some good berries to eat, but when we got here, the entire garden was a mess, so we replanted them and we were just having lunch.

Siara: Okay.

Iris: Then we started wondering how plants get their energy. I said that they get their energy from the sun, so we called you to find how plants get their energy from the sun.

Siara: Sure I do. The way plant get their energy from the sun through photosynthesis.

Iris: Okay, but what’s photosynthesis?

Siara: Photosynthesis is a process in which plants use energy from the sun to turn water, carbon dioxide and minerals into oxygen and organic compounds.

Dawn: Okay, but how does it happen?

Siara: Photosynthesis happens when water is absorbed by the plant’s roots and is carried over to the leaves by the xylem.

Iris: Wait, what’s a xylem?

Siara: A xylem is a type of transport tissue that transports water and nutrients throughout the plant.

Iris: Oh, okay, thanks.

Siara: No problem, Iris. Anyway, after that’s done, the plant obtains carbon dioxide from the air and then entered the leaves through the stomata, which are the pores that are used to control gas exchange, and diffuses it to the cells that are containing chlorophyll.

Ash: Huh? What’s chlorophyll?

Siara: It’s basically the green pigment on the plants.

Ash: Oh, all right.

Siara: The chlorophyll is capable of converting the active energy of light into a latent form that can be stored and be used when it’s needed.

Cilan: Photosynthesis is a very interesting process.

Siara: It sure is. Would you like to see how it’s done?

Dawn: All right, Siara.

Piplup: Piplup.

(Cut to Siara’s lab.)

Siara: Okay, what you’re going to is put the process of photosynthesis together in the right order.

Everyone: All right.

Siara: Good, then let’s get started. What happens first?

Ash: Water is absorbed by the roots and carried through the plant.

Siara: Good one, Ash. Now, what happens after that?

Dawn: It obtains carbon dioxide from the air, it then enters the leaves and diffuses it to the cells that have chlorophyll.

Siara: Way to go, Dawn. And what’s left?

Iris: The chlorophyll converts the active energy of light into a latent form and stores it.

Siara: All right, Iris. Good work, you guys.

Everyone: Thanks, Siara.

Piplup: Piplup.

Axew: Axew.

Pikachu: Pika.

Siara: No problem. Well, I’ve got to get back to work. See you later, guys.

Everyone: See you.

Dawn: Okay guys, how about we go over what we know before we do anything else?

Cilan: Okay, Dawn, but maybe we should ask our friends at home if they would like to do it with us before we do so.

Iris: Okay, Cilan. (She looks at the viewers.) Would you like to go over with us? (She waits for an answer from the viewers.) Okay. What is turned into oxygen and compounds during photosynthesis? (She waits for an answer from the viewers.) Water carbon dioxide and minerals. Way to go.

Ash: What is the plant’s green pigment called? (He waits for an answer from the viewers.) It’s called chlorophyll. Oh, yeah.

Everyone: Good work, guys.

Pikachu: Pika.

Axew: Axew.

Piplup: Piplup.

Iris: Okay, guys, what should we do now?

(They all think for a minute.)

Dawn: Well, how about putting the photosynthesis process together?

Ash: Wait a minute, didn’t we already do that?

Dawn: Yes, we did, but we’re going to do it differently this time.

Iris: Okay, Dawn, but if we’re going to do it, we’re going to need a little bit of help.

Cilan: Sure thing, Iris. (He looks at the viewers.) Would you like to help us out? (He waits for an answer from the viewers.) Oh, good.

(Cut to a picture of a plant.)

Dawn: Okay, we’re going to put the photosynthesis process. What you’re going to do is tell us what goes through the plant during the process. All right, let’s do it. What are the four things that are needed for photosynthesis? (She waits for an answer from the viewers.) Sunlight, minerals, water, and carbon dioxide. Way to go.

Cilan: The water is absorbed by the roots and carried through the plant by the xylem. Besides water, what else does the xylem transport? (He waits for an answer from the viewers.) It also transports nutrients through the plant. Very good.

Ash: What can the chlorophyll do? (He waits for an answer from the viewers.) It can change the light energy into a latent form and then store it. All right.

(Cut back to the gang.)

Everyone: Thanks for doing it, guys.

Pikachu: Pika.

Piplup: Piplup.

Axew: Axew.

Ash: Well, that was pretty good.

Dawn: Yeah, I guess it was.

Iris: It was a little bit interesting

Cilan: It wasn’t as good as how we did it with Siara, but it was still enjoyable.

(They look back at the garden.)

Iris: The garden may take a while to grow back, but once it does, you guys will be able to try those berries.

Ash: Yeah, and I’ll be the first to try them.

(They all turn to the viewers.)

Everyone: Thanks a lot, guys.

Pikachu: Pikachu.

Axew: Axew.

Piplup: Piplup.

(Cut to everyone sitting at the table.)

Cilan: We all had a good time today. Did you have a good time? (He waits for an answer from the viewers.) Good. I liked replanting the garden.

Dawn: I liked visiting around the village.

Ash: I liked looking at those statues.

Iris: I also liked replanting the garden.

Everyone: Thanks again, guys. See you next time.

(They all wave goodbye to the viewers and everything fades to black, ending the episode.)