AGRICULTURE REPORT - The Buzz About Bees

AGRICULTURE REPORT - The Buzz¹ About Bees
By Mario Ritter

Broadcast: Tuesday, May 31, 2005

I'm Gwen Outen with the VOA Special English Agriculture Report.

More than ninety kinds of fruits, vegetables, nuts and seed crops depend on bees for reproduction. Bees pollinate thousands of millions of dollars worth of crops.

 
 
The insects gather nectar liquid from flowers. As they do this, pollen² sticks to the bees. Pollen is the reproductive material of flowers. As a bee travels from plant to plant, so does the pollen.

Beekeepers transport their colonies by truck to farms where crops need pollination³. Pennsylvania State University estimates that the United States has about one hundred fifty thousand beekeepers.

Bees are good pollinators. But most people know them as producers of honey and wax.

In the United States, the Agriculture Department says more than two and one-half million colonies produced honey last year. Production increased one percent, though the number of colonies decreased two percent from two thousand three.

Honey can be stored, so producers can wait to sell when prices are up. But then prices fall as producers flood the market. That happened last year. Prices fell twenty-two percent after a good production year in two thousand three.

Between two and four colonies are needed to pollinate one hectare of most crops. Bees pollinate almost all almond and apple trees. Vegetables like broccoli⁴, carrots, celery and onions require bee pollination.

Experts say even crops that do not require bee pollination can be increased with the help of bees. The quality of many crops depends on the amount of pollination they receive. Crops like apples can grow unevenly⁵ if bees do not provide enough pollen for good reproduction.

Honeybees can be killed by chemical poisons. But they also have a lot of natural enemies. In North and South America, Asia and Europe, mites⁶ can destroy hives. These tiny creatures suck the blood of bees. Varroa mites are a serious threat to honeybees. Tracheal mites are also a big problem; they live in the breathing tubes of bees.

Wax moths⁷ are insects that eat wax in the hive. Bacterial⁸ diseases also affect colonies. The bacteria that cause European and American foulbrood attack and destroy young bees.

Raising bees can be difficult. But many people like to keep bees as a business or simply for pleasure.

This VOA Special English Agriculture Report was written by Mario Ritter. Our reports are online at www.unsv.com. I'm Gwen Outen.

1 buzz   

v.充满了激动或活动的声音，发出低沉的声音

参考例句：

• My brain was in buzz.我的脑袋嗡嗡响。
• A buzz went through the crowded courtroom.拥挤的法庭里响起了一片乱哄哄的说话声。

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 pollination   

n.授粉

参考例句：

• The flowers get pollination by insects.这些花通过昆虫授粉。
• Without sufficient pollination,the growth of the corn is stunted.没有得到充足的授粉，谷物的长势就会受阻。

4 broccoli   

n.绿菜花，花椰菜

参考例句：

• She grew all the broccoli plants from seed.这些花椰菜都是她用种子培育出来的。
• They think broccoli is only green and cauliflower is only white.他们认为西兰花只有绿色的，而菜花都是白色的。

5 unevenly   

adv.不均匀的

参考例句：

• Fuel resources are very unevenly distributed. 燃料资源分布很不均匀。
• The cloth is dyed unevenly. 布染花了。

6 mites   

n.（尤指令人怜悯的）小孩( mite的名词复数 )；一点点；一文钱；螨

参考例句：

• The only discovered animals are water bears, mites, microscopic rotifers. 能够发现的动物只有海蜘蛛、螨和微小的轮虫。 来自辞典例句
• Mites are frequently found on eggs. 螨会经常出现在蛋上。 来自辞典例句

7 moths   

n.蛾( moth的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The moths have eaten holes in my wool coat. 蛀虫将我的羊毛衫蛀蚀了几个小洞。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The moths tapped and blurred at the window screen. 飞蛾在窗帘上跳来跳去，弄上了许多污点。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

8 bacterial   

a.细菌的

参考例句：

• Bacterial reproduction is accelerated in weightless space. 在失重的空间，细菌繁殖加快了。
• Brain lesions can be caused by bacterial infections. 大脑损伤可能由细菌感染引起。