题目内容
Growers around the world are using new methods to grow grapes to make wine. They use natural and organic methods to control harmful insects and weeds instead of using chemicals. Now, a winery in Canada has adopted a natural way to control its grapevines (葡萄藤).The Featherstone Winery is in southern Ontario. The grapevines, like other plants, need to be cut every year.
Cutting grapevines must be done very carefully. Only a targeted area of leaves is removed from the lower part of the vines to help the grapes grow better. But at the Featherstone Winery, no man or machine does the cutting. Instead, the job is done by 40 little wooly lambs.www.zxxk.com
David Johnson owns the vineyard. He says he learned about using lambs while visiting wineries in New Zealand. The young lambs are perfectly designed to do the job. They eat the grape leaves on the lower parts of the vine. But they are not tall enough to reach the grapes. They only weigh about 22 kilograms, so they do not beat down the soil. And their waste makes good organic fertilizer. In addition, using the lambs costs much less than hiring workers to cut the vines for seven weeks in summer. And when the cutting is done in August, the lambs become tasty dishes.
Mr Johnson says he had a difficult time finding enough lambs to do the job. There are about 50 million lambs in New Zealand. But there are not nearly as many in Ontario. Also, some organic pesticides (杀虫剂) are harmful to lambs. And the lambs must be watched to make sure they do not eat too much of the grapevines.
David Johnson says the lambs help him carry out his environmental ideas about farming. They are lovely and peaceful and he likes having them in his vineyard. People visiting the vineyard also enjoy watching the lambs do their job.
1.Farmers who grow grapes with natural and organic methods _____.
A. don't cut grapevines every year
B. don't use chemicals to control harmful insects and weeds
C. don't need to control harmful insects and weeds
D. don't use organic fertilizer
2.In order to help the grapes grow better, growers _____.
A. only have to remove the dead leaves
B. need to remove a specific area of leaves
C. shouldn't remove any part of the plants
D. should let little lambs do the cutting
3.Paragraph 4 is mainly about _____.
A. the future of getting lambs to do the cutting
B. the worries about using organic pesticides
C. the ways to get lambs to do the cutting
D. the problems related to lambs doing the cutting
4.We can infer from the passage that David Johnson______.
A. owns several wineries in Canada
B. buys lambs from New Zealand
C. is concerned about protecting the environment
D. loves keeping lambs instead of farming
1.B
2.B
3.D
4.C
【解析】
试题分析:本文在采用环保的方式来种植葡萄酿酒。
1.B细节题 从第一段They use natural and organic methods to control harmful insects and weeds instead of using chemicals中找到答案B是正确的。
2.B推断题,从第二段Only a targeted area of leaves is removed from the lower part of the vines to help the grapes grow better推断出答案B项。
3.D 段落大意 从第四段第一句话推断出D项
4.C推断题 从最后一段第一句话推断出David Johnson是个环保人士
考点 环保类阅读
阅读下面短文,根据所读内容在表格中的空白处填入恰当的单词。注意:每个空格只填一个单词。
Farmers and gardeners have long used greenhouses to extend the growing season in cold weather. Now, hoop houses are gaining popularity. Some hoop houses are rounded; others are shaped more like a traditional house.
A hoop house is basically a metal frame covered with plastic or other all-weather material. A common design looks like a high tunnel. Unlike a greenhouse, which uses a heating system, a hoop house is heated by the warmth of the sun.
Now, the United States Department of Agriculture has announced a program to help farmers who want to build hoop houses. The department has been supporting a project in Michigan. That state has a short growing season. As part of the research project, nine farmers were given materials and trained how to build and use a hoop house. The results showed that well-managed hoop houses can grow high-quality crops.
However, crops are not the only things that grow well. The research found that weeds grow faster in a hoop house. Weeding (除草), seeding and watering requires at least as much work as crops grown in the open air. The researchers also advise growers to add compost(堆肥) material to the soil in hoop houses to build nutrients.
Eliot Coleman is an organic farmer and a writer in Maine who has helped popularize the idea of four-season farming. His ideas about hoop houses sounded good to John Biernbaum in the Horticulture(园艺)Department at Michigan State University.
Professor Biernbaum tried hoop houses on the Student Organic Farm at Michigan State and had success. Project director David Conner says it was a "test drive(试车)" for the research on private farms. The agricultural economist points to the demand for locally grown crops. "People are hungry for good, fresh vegetables," he says.
Topic |
Hoop houses |
|
Design |
56._________ |
·Like a high tunnel ·Some round ; others like a 57. house. |
Material |
·Metal frame. ·Plastic or other all-weather material. |
|
58. |
The warmth of the sun. |
|
Research project in Michigan |
The program |
·It is 59._________by the US Department of Agriculture. ·Michigan was chosen due to its short 60._________season. ·Nine farmers were given materials and trained how to build and use a hoop house. ·It is greatly 61._________by the ideas from Eliot Coleman. |
62. |
·High-quality crops can grow in well-managed hoop houses. ·Weeds also grow faster in hoop houses. |
|
63. |
·Weeding, seeding and watering needs as much work as naturally grown crops. ·64. should be added to the soil. |
|
Significance |
Demand for locally grown crops 65._________further research on private farms. |
56 57 58 59 60
61 62 63 64 65
What’s delicious to eat and comes in a variety of colors? Eggplant! And no, it has nothing to do with chickens! This strangely named vegetable is, however, as versatile as an egg.It can be steamed, fried, and baked.It can be eaten by itself or combined with meats and other vegetables.
Eggplant was first grown in India in the 5th century BC.Its popularity soon spread to China and then throughout Asia.Finally, during the Middle Ages the vegetable made its way to Europe.At that time, eggplant was not the shiny purple vegetable most people know today.Instead, it’s like a white egg.Due to this egg - like appearance, eggplant got its name.In its early days, the vegetable was so bitter that people often called it a “mad apple.” This nickname started because people believed its bitterness was bad for one' s health.People actually thought eggplant could cause madness and cancer.
Fortunately today people know that eggplant doesn't cause insanity or cancer.In fact eggplant is so healthy that it may prevent cancer.In addition, the brain and the heart benefit from this super vegetable.Since it's high in fibre, eggplant can improve digestion.
Italy, Turkey, Egypt, China and Japan are the leading growers of eggplant in the world today.Depending on its location, eggplant may be purple, green, orange or yellow - white.And it can be as small as a tomato or as large as a cucumber.Dish varieties range from simple to complex, with all of them being delicious.
Today, thousands of people gather in Loomis, Calif, for the annual Loomis Eggplant Festival.The main activity at the festival is eating delicious eggplant dishes.There is plenty more to do and see, though.Recipe contests, arts and crafts, performers, races and children's activities all “egg – cite” festival - goers.Most people at the festival would agree—eggplant is an “egg—cellent” vegetable.
1.Eggplant got its name because of its _____.
A.appearance |
B.taste |
C.color |
D.value |
2.Which of the following does NOT belong to the qualities of eggplant?
A.It can be cooked in various ways. |
B.It is easy to digest. |
C.It can prevent cancer. |
D.It is valuable and priceless. |
3.Which of the following is true according to the passage?
A.Eggplant can be eaten to cure cancer |
B.Eggplant used to taste bitter. |
C.India produce the most eggplant in the world today. |
D.Eggplant has a history of nearly 1,000 years. |
4.Most people come to the Loomis Eggplant Festival to_____.
A.see arts and crafts |
B.enjoy food with eggplants |
C.take part in recipe contests |
D.promote eggplant |