AGRICULTURE REPORT - National Arboretum Anniversary

AGRICULTURE REPORT
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March 26, 2002: National Arboretum¹ Anniversary²

By George Grow

This is the VOA Special English AGRICULTURE REPORT.

Many people who come to Washington, D-C, act surprised when they first visit the United States National
Arboretum. The National Arboretum is only a short drive from the center of the city. However, visitors to the
Arboretum often feel like they are far from the busy American capital.

The National Arboretum covers one-hundred-eighty hectares of green space in the northeast part of Washington.
The area is famous for its beautiful flowers, tall trees and other plants.

An arboretum is a place where trees and plants are grown for scientific and
educational purposes. The National Arboretum was established by an act of Congress³
in Nineteen-Twenty-Seven. Today, the United States Department of Agriculture
operates the Arboretum.

The goal of the Arboretum is to carry out studies and provide education in an effort to
improve the environment. The goal includes protecting trees, flowers and other plants
and showing them to the public.

The National Arboretum is a popular stop for visitors to Washington. About six-
hundred-thousand people visit the Arboretum each year. It also has become famous through cooperative⁴
programs with many countries, including Austria, Japan and Russia.

Recently, the Secretary of Agriculture, Ann Veneman, opened a year-long celebration in honor⁵ of the National
Arboretum’s seventy-fifth anniversary. Mizz Veneman praised the Arboretum as a national treasure.

As part of the celebration, Mizz Veneman assisted⁶ in the planting of a tree near the
United States Capitol building. The tree --a Sun Valley red maple⁷ --is one of the
many award-winning plants developed by Arboretum scientists.

The Sun Valley red maple was developed as part of a project to study the genetic⁸
qualities of leaf color and insect resistance⁹. The tree produces leaves that remain
bright red late into autumn. It was tested in the state of Maryland. The Sun Valley
maple kept its colorful leaves for about two weeks before they fell to the ground.
The tree also resisted the potato leafhopper, an insect that feeds on the leaves of
trees.

American Agriculture Department officials say they expect the Sun Valley red maple will be ready for sale to the
general public next year.

This VOA Special English AGRICULTURE REPORT was written by George Grow.

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1 arboretum   

n.植物园

参考例句：

• We can go to the arboretum in the southern suburb.我们可以去南郊的植物园。
• The arboretum is full of exotic flowers and rare herbs.植物园里长满了各种奇花异草。

2 anniversary   

n.周年(纪念日)

参考例句：

• They celebrate their wedding anniversary annually.他们每年庆祝一番结婚纪念日。
• Today is my parents'30th wedding anniversary.今天是我父母结婚30周年纪念日。

3 Congress   

n.(代表)大会；(C-:美国等国的)国会，议会

参考例句：

• There were some days to wait before the Congress.大会的召开还有几天时间。
• After 18 years in Congress,he intented to return to private life.在国会供职18年后，他打算告老还乡。

4 cooperative   

adj.有合作意向的，合作的；n.合作社（企业）等

参考例句：

• The workmen are very cooperative,so the work goes on smoothly.工人们十分合作，所以工作进展顺利。
• We decided to set up a cooperative.我们决定开办一家合作社。

5 honor   

n.光荣；敬意；荣幸；vt.给…以荣誉；尊敬

参考例句：

• I take your visit as a great honor.您的来访是我莫大的光荣。
• It is a great honor to receive that prize.能拿到那个奖是无上的光荣。

6 assisted   

adj.[计]辅助的v.帮助，促进( assist的过去式和过去分词 )；为…的助手；为…当帮手；辅助

参考例句：

• We were ably assisted by a team of volunteers. 我们得到一批志愿者的大力协助。
• The nurse assisted with the preparation of the medicine. 护士帮助准备药品。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 maple   

n.槭树，枫树，槭木

参考例句：

• Maple sugar is made from the sap of maple trees.枫糖是由枫树的树液制成的。
• The maple leaves are tinge with autumn red.枫叶染上了秋天的红色。

8 genetic   

adj.遗传的，遗传学的

参考例句：

• It's very difficult to treat genetic diseases.遗传性疾病治疗起来很困难。
• Each daughter cell can receive a full complement of the genetic information.每个子细胞可以收到遗传信息的一个完全补偿物。

9 resistance   

n.抵抗力，反抗，反抗行动；阻力，电阻；反对；adj.抵抗的

参考例句：

• Very little resistance was put up by the enemy.敌人没怎么进行抵抗。
• An aircraft has to overcome the resistance of the air.飞机须克服空气的阻力。