英语博客：Amaryllis.

 　　Something has grown in my mother's kitchen this Winter. It is tall, beautiful, and bright red. If you're in the room, you can't help but * look at it. It's an amaryllis. It was given to her as a Christmas present, and she has been growing it from a bulb since then. They are originally from South Africa, a member of the lily family. As there are no plants growing here in the Winter, it is common to give the gift of an amaryllis bulb in a pretty pot, as a plant to be grown inside the house. Once planted, it will quickly grow tall, and produce a stunning¹ flower. It's the kind of plant that you want to photograph up close. Its stamen are a contrasting yellow, and hold a lot of pollen². It's similar to some of the orchids³ that my mother has grown through the years; they also have a very fleshy*, waxy⁴ feel to them, and have very rich colors. The other day when I visited her, I was reminded that I also have bulbs at home that need to be planted. Actually, in the Autumn, I bought three bags of bulbs, to be planted that season in the garden. Let's just say that I put them 'out of sight'*, and they are still in the bags. They have actually started to sprout⁵, even though they are not in soil. Apparently⁶, even though I missed the season, I can still plant them in pots and keep them in the house where they will slowly grow. Then, in the Spring, I can transplant them outside. It's a bit like the potatoes that I buy for making chips, baked potatoes or mashed⁷ potatoes. If don't use them in time, they will have sprouted⁸ all sorts of roots and become inedible⁹. Plants are programmed to grow, and they will do it, whether or not we are taking care of them. A friend of mine told me that one year she planted too many zucchini plants (they are also called courgets). They had a car parked next to the vegetable patch that was not used much. Before anyone knew it*, the zucchini vine had grown all over and inside the car! All this talk of plants is making me yearn* for the Spring. First things first though; I need to find those bags of bulbs and get them planted!

　　Related vocabulary: you can't help but..., fleshy, out of sight, before you know it.

　　1. You can't help but admire him. Everybody thinks he is brilliant.

　　2. These apricots are so fleshy. They have a lot of body, and are filling.

　　3. He didn't really clean the houe. He just put everything away, out of sight, in the cupboard.

　　4. You'll have a child, and, before you know it, he will have grown, and will be leaving for college.

1 stunning   

adj.极好的；使人晕倒的

参考例句：

• His plays are distinguished only by their stunning mediocrity.他的戏剧与众不同之处就是平凡得出奇。
• The finished effect was absolutely stunning.完工后的效果非常美。

2 pollen   

n.[植]花粉

参考例句：

• Hummingbirds have discovered that nectar and pollen are very nutritious.蜂鸟发现花蜜和花粉是很有营养的。
• He developed an allergy to pollen.他对花粉过敏。

3 orchids   

n.兰花( orchid的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Wild flowers such as orchids and primroses are becoming rare. 兰花和报春花这类野花越来越稀少了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• She breeds orchids in her greenhouse. 她在温室里培育兰花。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 waxy   

adj.苍白的；光滑的

参考例句：

• Choose small waxy potatoes for the salad.选些个头小、表皮光滑的土豆做色拉。
• The waxy oil keeps ears from getting too dry.这些蜡状耳油可以保持耳朵不会太干燥。

5 sprout   

n.芽，萌芽；vt.使发芽，摘去芽；vi.长芽，抽条

参考例句：

• When do deer first sprout horns?鹿在多大的时候开始长出角？
• It takes about a week for the seeds to sprout.这些种子大约要一周后才会发芽。

6 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

7 mashed   

a.捣烂的

参考例句：

• two scoops of mashed potato 两勺土豆泥
• Just one scoop of mashed potato for me, please. 请给我盛一勺土豆泥。

8 sprouted   

v.发芽( sprout的过去式和过去分词 )；抽芽；出现；（使）涌现出

参考例句：

• We can't use these potatoes; they've all sprouted. 这些土豆儿不能吃了，都出芽了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The rice seeds have sprouted. 稻种已经出芽了。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

9 inedible   

adj.不能吃的，不宜食用的

参考例句：

• The food was totally inedible.食物完全无法下咽。
• These chemicals make the fruit inedible.这些化学品使这种水果不宜食用。