"It is like looking for the sources of the Nile. This proverb meant trying something that is impossible. The source of the river Nile was a mystery for many centuries. The ancient Egyptians thought the source of the river, which annually provided their country with fertile silt, was divine. The ancient Greeks claimed the source to be natural. Ptolemy, the famous cartographer, claimed the Nile's origins where two large seas, being fed by the melting snow of a mountain chain. This mountain chain he called "The Mountains of the Moon".
On ancient maps you can see these mountains depicted, for people thought Ptolemy was right. Around the equator, Africa is nearly split in two by a mountain range, with two seas drawn above them, and they are called "Montes Lunae". Mountains of the Moon.
This remained so until the true source of the Nile was discovered, the Kagera river feeding Lake Victoria. But the mountains of the moon exist, as explorers discovered later. Today, the Ruwenzori, a small mountain chain between present-day Uganda and Congo, have been identified as the legendary mountains of the moon. Indeed, their summits are covered with eternal snow, and yes, two large bodies of water, although lakes instead of seas, are fed with water from the melting snow. And these lakes are the most important source of the White Nile, a sidearm of the river.
Now, the landscape of the Ruwenzori is indeed alien. Everything there seems to grow to a much larger size than usual. Worms can reach a size of 1,5 feet and are as thick as a thumb. Groundsel, which usually stands a mere 16 inches tall, reaches in those regions a height of 21 feet.
Diogenes, the Greek traveler who claimed to have been there and gave Ptolemy the information, might have called the area "Mountains of the Moon" because of the unearthly growth and alien surroundings. Others speculate they got their name from a local tribe living there. These people were called the "people of the moon". And others claim the name comes from the white, snow-covered summits, who have the same color as the moon.
Whatever the case, my team and I have found the reason for the growth. It is not, as speculated, a combination of tropical warmth and frequent rainfall. The growth's cause lies in the ground, the earth, which contains an -until now- unidentified chemical substance. Plants and some animals, like the aforementioned groundsel and worms, absorb this substance and grow. The plants consume it through their roots, and the worms, who live underground, by consuming the earth.
After thorough research, my team and I managed to isolate, analyze and even reproduce the chemical. I have a sample here."

Professor Sandra Hammer of the Faculty of Geochemistry (the study of chemical processes in the Earth) at the University of Detroit, switched the overhead projector off and held up a small vial. It contained a brown liquid, not unlike coffee for her audience to see. That audience consisted of six people, including the headmaster himself. The other five were the deacon of her Faculty, the chief of finances, and three council members. They gazed at the small item.

"Tests with plants have been successful," prof. Hammer continued. "Even under environmental circumstances unlike those in Eastern Africa, the plants grow much bigger with the growing agent (we haven't named it yet) added to the soil. If our data are correct, I truly believe we are at the verge of a new area of agriculture here."

Prof. Hammer smiled proudly, expecting cheers and applause from her audience. But what she got instead were mocking laughs.

"Are you telling us you found some magical stuff to make plants grow huge?" the deacon of her Faculty, which Sandra knew well, asked.

"Yeah, and even if, can you guarantee that the plants are safe for us to eat?" the man which she knew as the chief of finances added. "I doubt anyone would even remotely consider buying such vegetables."

"The public wouldn't like it, and you should know the industry would oppose it." It was the headmaster of the University who spoke now. A man in his sixties, who had financed Prof. Hammer's expedition to Eastern Africa a few months ago.

"But... but it works," Prof. Hammer replied, taken aback. "We need much less space to grow crops if we use this...".

"We are wasting our time here," the chief of finances said, standing up and ready to leave. "There are more important things for us to attend to today, like that meeting in your office, headmaster. And you, miss Hammer, waste resources and money. Some chemical in the ground making plants grow huge! You'd better spend your time researching oil or coal resources, that is what we need. Sorry to say so, but you are a shame to your science."

With that, the University's string-pullers left, leaving a baffled professor Hammer behind.