1.播种及发芽阶段(seed,sprout,8月份种植，发芽期10—15天)；
2.生长及发育阶段(stem,blossom,幼苗期30—50天)；
3.成熟及结果阶段(produce,fruit,开花、结果期60—100天)。
注意：
1.词数80左右;
2.请在相应位置作答。
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2 . Bottle gardens are loved by many people. What’s a bottle garden? A bottle garden is exactly what it sounds like: a tiny garden planted in an object like a bottle._
By following some tips, you’ll have your bottle garden planted and thriving (茁壮成长) in no time. The first step in creating a bottle garden is selecting (挑选) the bottle. Clear bottles can allow the most sunlight to enter.
Then you should keep in mind that bottles with openings big enough to fit your hand through can make planting easier.
When the bottle is ready, put inside some rich soil and plants suitable for a bottle garden. Once you grow the plants in the way you like, remember to place your bottle in a bright space which won’t have direct sunlight. East-facing windows often work well for this purpose.
| A．How do the bottle gardens work? |
| B．Such gardens don’t have a very long history. |
| C．They make thoughtful and eco-friendly gifts. |
| D．Why would anyone want to grow a garden in a bottle? |
| E．If you choose a colored bottle, select plants that prefer low levels of light. |
| F．If not, you’ll have to use tools to work the soil and plants inside the bottle. |
| G．You can also use a grow light if your home doesn’t have any suitable windows. |
3 . Readers can explore the wonders of nature with Big Tree. The book was written by famous author and illustrator (插画家) Brian Selznick. It is filled with detailed black-and-white illustrations, which took years to complete.
The story introduces Merwin and Louise, two tiny Sycamore seeds (梧桐树种子) who began life during the time when dinosaurs (恐龙) travelled around the Earth. After they fell from their mother tree, they started a dangerous 147-million-year adventure to the modern day.
After reading it, I met with the famous author and illustrator at his home in La Jolla, California. Selznick explained the lessons that nature offers about helping our planet and each other. “All of us can do something to help the real seed,” Selznick said. “No matter how small you feel, there’s always something you can do.”
As for his main goal when writing Big Tree, Selznick said, “Readers feel like they are learning about interesting stories when they read Big Tree, but actually and secretly, they are learning about real science. That’s why I wrote Big Tree.”
In order to write Big Tree, Selznick went to the New York Botanical Garden, where he talked to a wonderful park manager. She walked him through the forest and talked about the way leaves work, the way trees grow and the way trees experience time.
Selznick said he learned a lot while creating Big Tree. “The manager thinks that forests are really communities. It really surprised me,” he said. “We live in communities, and when we run into trouble or danger, we communicate with each other to find solutions. Trees are doing the same thing. We’re all part of a community. And that, to me, was a really important part of Big Tree.”
1. What does paragraph 2 mainly focus on?| A．The main idea of Big Tree. | B．The discussion about Big Tree. |
| C．The review of Big Tree. | D．The story behind Big Tree. |
| A．To show the illustration art. | B．To share an interesting story. |
| C．To encourage readers to learn. | D．To make real science interesting. |
| A．He did some research. | B．He planted some trees. |
| C．He asked others’ advice. | D．He stayed in the forest alone. |
| A．Trees are important for communities. | B．Trees can communicate with each other. |
| C．Trees can protect people against danger. | D．Trees run into trouble more often. |
4 . As Earth’s climate continues to change, a plant’s ability to adapt to its changing environment is important to its survival. Often, to stay alive, a plant must move locations by releasing its seeds, but plants are rooted in the ground and cannot move themselves. Instead, they are dependent on animals or the wind to carry their seeds to a new location.
Playing an essential part in an ecosystem (生态系统), plants create resources like food and medicine for us human beings. A team of researchers developed the model to better understand how plants can stay resiliency (韧性) when facing challenges like climate change.
“Once seeds are released from a plant, we wanted to know how far they can go because as wind conditions shake, the seeds will be moved around differently because of various weights, sizes, and shapes,” says Binbin Wang, an assistant professor at the University of Missouri.
Changes in one part of the ecosystem can create a “snowball effect” on other parts. That’s why understanding seed spread is important. Plants can only make this move once during their life — as a seed, says Lauren Sullivan, an assistant professor at Michigan State University.
“Understanding how plants move as seeds year-round is important for us to analyze how they’ll be able to handle climate change,” Sullivan says. “This movement is also important for how we can increase diversity (多样性) in the ecosystem.” “We’re now able to partner with researchers. This innovative approach can help us develop accurate models that are simple enough to make good predictions in a short time.”
The model, which makes predictions based on seed and plant type, plant height, and wind speed, can develop an entire year’s worth of predictive data in just one or two days. As part of their future work, the team will develop educational programming for K-12 and college students. For example, they will provide opportunities for college students to explore how different disciplines, such as agriculture, biological sciences, and engineering, can work together to solve different real-world problems.
1. Why did the researchers develop the model?| A．To learn how plants handle challenges like climate change. |
| B．To find out what helps seeds travel to different places. |
| C．To study the effects climate change has on plants. |
| D．To create more food and medicine resources. |
| A．Its weight. | B．Its location. | C．Its size. | D．Its shape. |
| A．It is caused by the change of the climate. |
| B．It can happen during the whole life of a plant. |
| C．It has an effect on other parts of the ecosystem. |
| D．It’s hard to be predicted for the diversity of ecosystem. |
| A．Explore different disciplines for college students. |
| B．Work together to solve different real-world problems. |
| C．Develop educational programming for students to explore. |
| D．Make valuable predictions about the type and height of the plants. |
5 . Have you ever tried a cactus (仙人掌) pear? Yes, its prickly surface makes it an unusual-looking fruit but it is widely used in Mexican dishes. This fruit from the cactus is really good for you because it is helpful in fighting against many diseases, and has many health benefits (利益). There are actually over 200 types of cactus fruit and they grow in hot dry places.
Since the world is getting hotter and drier, it is even more difficult for hot dry places to grow major crops (庄稼) that need more water. Therefore, providing food and fuel will go a long way in a world that is heating up. Researchers from the University of Nevada, Reno, set out to see if the cactus pear could become a superfood that could feed people and animals, remove carbon (碳) from the atmosphere and be used as a biofuel.
While the study looked at many types of cactuses, they settled on the nopal cactus or Opuntia. The fruit can be gathered as food and the rest of the cactus can be used for taking in carbon and can be used as biofuels according to biology professor Cushman. The plant keeps water by closing its pores (气孔) during the hottest part of the day to limit water loss and opens them at night. Cushman hopes to use the genes from this plant to add them to other plants.
They are also studying the Opuntia stunting disease, which causes cactuses to grow smaller plants and less fruits, in order to find out how it spreads. They hope to learn how to create tools to recognize and treat it so that they can help Opuntia become a prolific crop.
In a world that is also gaining population, finding a new superfood will go a long way in feeding a planet that will need 50-90 percent more food in 2050. Eating more plant-based foods will also reduce the amount of land needed for more food protection.
1. What can we know about the cactus pear?| A．It is of great benefit to people. |
| B．It is the main food for Mexicans. |
| C．It can’t be seen outside Mexico. |
| D．It grows in hot wet places. |
| A．It is easy to be gathered. |
| B．It has fewer pores 10 save water. |
| C．It is suitable for various conditions. |
| D．It is eatable and good for the environment. |
| A．Helpful. | B．Unusual. | C．Attractive. | D．Fruitful. |
| A．Getting away from increasingly higher temperatures |
| B．Cactus pears may become the new superfood crop |
| C．A cactus is the plant living well in dry areas |
| D．Providing plant-based food for the world |
6 . How to Care for Your Tree
1. Water the newly planted tree. Once the tree is planted, water it and keep up a
Water the tree every day for several weeks to let the
Water as necessary for the conditions in your area.
If you are planting fruit or nut trees for a small home orchard, continue to water weekly for the
2. Use mulch (覆盖物). Considering adding a layer of mulch
Cover the planting hole with 1-3 inches of shredded hardwood or leaf mulch. Keep the mulch at least 12 inches away from the trunk
Mulching around the tree will
3. Prune the tree if necessary. If there are any broken, dead, or diseased limbs on your tree,
4. Enjoy the tree as it grows over the years. Appreciate its
You’ll need to make sure that you water your plant to keep it thriving. You want to achieve
Watering your tree with a steady stream from a garden hose for about 30 seconds should be sufficient. The soil should feel moist at all times and mulch will help retain the moisture.
Check soil moisture by digging about 2 inches below the surface and then use your
| A．native | B．particular | C．regular | D．positive |
| A．twigs | B．barks | C．trunk | D．roots |
| A．Give | B．Take | C．Think | D．Look |
| A．when | B．why | C．how | D．what |
| A．life | B．color | C．shape | D．beauty |
| A．related to | B．due to | C．owing to | D．according to |
| A．around | B．across | C．beside | D．along |
| A．so | B．and | C．or | D．if |
| A．protect | B．provide | C．plant | D．grow |
| A．for which | B．which | C．that | D．on that |
| A．water | B．remove | C．treat | D．handle |
| A．color | B．landscape | C．shade | D．scene |
| A．as long as | B．even if | C．in spite of | D．in terms of |
| A．unity | B．fact | C．chance | D．balance |
| A．ruler | B．finger | C．hand | D．stick |
7 . We are learning more and more every day about just how smart some animals are: monkeys, some species of birds, dogs, cats. But how about other animals? Snails? Mosquitos? They sure seem less smart. Still smarter than plants, though. Because it would be difficult to argue that plants are intelligent. Or would it?
In a new study, it was shown that plants send out sounds when they are sad. And these sounds are very different depending on whether they have recently been cut or whether they don’t have enough water. The sounds can’t be heard by human ears, as they are between 20 and 100 kilohertz, which is above the bottom of human hearing (which usually has the upper limit of 15-17 kilohertz).
These are fantastic results: plants don’t suffer in silence; they are screaming with pain. That is exactly what the popular science press has been doing.
There is no evidence that they are heard by anyone although theoretically (理论上) some animals — bats, moths, mice — could actually hear it as their ears are sensitive to the plant sounds. And it could very well be a byproduct (副产品) of the physical condition of these plants: less water in the system leads to more air bubbles (气泡) in plants, which leads to the sound of the popping of these bubbles.
Is this a disappointing explanation? I don’t think so. The aim is to understand why plants do what they do. And the results about the sounds contribute to this body of knowledge. They could even lead to better ways of controlling the needs of plants in gardening by sound observation.
All of this is true even if the plants don’t strictly “cry” or “scream”.
1. Why are we unable to hear the sounds of plants?| A．Because they are imagined by humans. |
| B．Because they go beyond human hearing. |
| C．Because plants don’t actually give off sounds. |
| D．Because plants are not as intelligent as animals. |
| A．Plants keep silent even when they suffer. |
| B．Water in the plants sends off different sounds. |
| C．The plant sounds might show their feelings or needs. |
| D．The study aims to control the needs and feelings of plants. |
| A．Because plants don’t actually “cry” or “scream”. |
| B．Because the results prove their knowledge of plants. |
| C．Because the results show that-plants understand what they do. |
| D．Because plants’ demands could be met by observing their sounds. |
| A．Plants suffer in silence | B．Plants “cry” in pain |
| C．Plants “scream” with joy | D．Plants need attention |
8 . House Plants That Are Easy to Grow
Jessica Damiano is an expert at taking care of plants. She writes stories about how to keep plants in good condition.
As a result, Damiano chooses house plants that need the least amount of care for her home.
Chinese evergreen is a beautiful house plant that does well in low-light conditions. Damiano said all you need to do is keep the plant’s soil lightly wet at all times and fertilize (施肥) every other month over the winter and every month for the rest of the year.
The cast iron plant is as strong as its name sounds. Damiano said it does not even want your attention.
One house plant, the aloe plant, can be used for treating burns.
Similar plants called succulents share aloe plants’ ability to store water within their leaves.
| A．Avoid providing too much sunlight. |
| B．But even she has killed house plants. |
| C．These house plants usually need much attention. |
| D．She looks for plants that grow well with very little water. |
| E．There are many other house plants that need little water and sunlight. |
| F．These sorts of plants usually do well where conditions are dry and warm. |
| G．When necessary, just cut open a leaf and use the juice from within on an injury. |
9 . This is the time of year when many gardeners are harvesting tomatoes. Gardening expert Jessica Damiano recently reported about the many pictures of strangely shaped tomatoes sent to her from fans of her gardening advice.
Not every tomato on an affected plant will be deformed (改变形状), however. What are the possibilities? Under the right conditions (temperatures that are too hot or even too cold), this could affect one or two tomatoes per plant, depending on where they are in the development process and what the (weather) conditions are, said Timothy McDermott, a professor at Ohio State University. The possibility of one of your tomatoes developing a locule oddity (怪异) is about one in a thousand, McDermott said.
And, when harvesting your crop, remember:
| A．select the good-looking ones. |
| B．Any tomato can grow an extra locule. |
| C．the funny-looking tomatoes taste just as good! |
| D．What causes the unusual appearance of tomatoes? |
| E．Unless otherwise diseased, they are perfectly good for eating. |
| F．She said people sometimes question if the tomatoes are okay to eat. |
| G．Provide shade for your plants when temperatures are predicted to remain above 32℃. |
10 . My husband, Dave, who teaches Botany (植物学), always plants things. He has planted trees anywhere we have lived and is proud to see they are flourishing and providing shade and beauty for whoever lives there.
I also love planting, especially the harvest. But I hate weeding (除草). I remember one of our first gardens in Kansas when I was attacked by the hugest grasshoppers (蚱蜢) I had ever seen while weeding our little garden.
Now, our growing efforts at our new home are vegetables. We are enjoying the garden we have created. It’s large but manageable with daily care. We use methods to minimize weeds. We have the time to keep up with the watering and weeding. I find I don’t hate that anymore.
There is something satisfying about pulling grass, and violets that are growing where we don’t want them, and unnamed weeds that are affecting the growth of what we want. I find that my relationship with gardening is turning into a true romance that has a rosy future.
It’s all about time, environment and attitude. Being in my eighties, I have the time to be patient for results, to enjoy the hope for future harvest, and I have the knowledge that comes from experience. I find a lot to love about growing things and about growing older.
1. What does the author’s husband take pride in?| A．Teaching. | B．Weeding. |
| C．Planting trees. | D．Growing vegetables. |
| A．Calm. | B．Excited. | C．Bored. | D．Frightened. |
| A．Weeds are growing wildly. | B．The author begins to enjoy weeding. |
| C．The author finds new ways to weed. | D．Weeds balance the garden. |
| A．It is a time to start work. |
| B．It is a stage of showing pity for the lost past. |
| C．It lets people become patient and wise. |
| D．It makes learning knowledge difficult. |
