VOA慢速英语2021 新冠疫情期间美国城市园艺业扩张

City Gardening Expands in US During Pandemic

On pieces of unused land in the Bronx, gardeners from many neighborhoods work together to make more than 12 farm hubs. The Bronx is an area in the northern part of New York City.

The gardeners are combining efforts for their community gardens and harvests.

Years ago, some found that, together, their small gardens could grow enough produce to make a lot of hot sauce. So, they shared harvests to create a product called Bronx Hot Sauce. Profits from the sales are reinvested in their communities.

Throughout the pandemic, the farm hubs of the Bronx have again proven their strength. They are producing leafy green vegetables and root crops like garlic, for example.

"The trick is: How can we learn from the pandemic so that we become [truly] resilient?" says Raymond Figueroa-Reyes. He is president of the New York City Community Garden Coalition¹.

The Bronx's farm hubs are part of an urban gardening movement across the country. The gardeners are seeking to empower their communities by urging them to grow their own food. When the pandemic hit, urban farming expanded widely and became highly² productive³.

Many urban and rural⁴ areas in the U.S. have little access to healthy, fresh food. These areas usually have high rates of disease⁵, such as high blood pressure and diabetes⁶.

Millions of Americans live in neighborhoods without healthy food. And unhealthy fast food is everywhere. In cities, some community leaders use terms like "food prisons" to describe this lack of fresh food as part of deeper issues of race and equity⁷.

Ron Finley of Los Angeles has been gardening in the city for several years. He says, "Growing your own food is like printing your own money." Finley runs the nonprofit organization Ron Finley Project. "It's not just about food, it's about freedom. It's our revolution," he told the Associated Press.

Finley grew up in South Central Los Angeles, where he says he had to drive 45 minutes just to get a fresh tomato. His efforts to rebuild communities through gardening include planting crops on deserted⁸ land.

Finley says fast-food restaurants are "killing⁹ more people in our communities" than guns.

"When you plant a seed," it will reproduce¹⁰, he said. It's about currency. "It's a valuable resource. That's empowering. It's about more than food."

In the Bronx, Karen Washington has spent several years pushing urban farming forward. She helped organize the pepper-growing that led to Bronx Hot Sauce. The company they work with now also makes hot sauce with community-grown peppers from other U.S. cities.

"Healthy food is a human right, along with clean water," Washington said.

She is a member of the supervisory¹¹ group from the New York Botanical Garden and has assisted¹² neighbor-hoods in starting community gardens. Washington also has helped launch¹³ City Farms Market. It brings low-cost fresh fruits and vegetables to a weekly Bronx farmers' market.

Washington says COVID-19 made a lot of people want to grow their own food. "If we are going to fight viruses," she said, "we need to start eating healthy."

Figueroa-Reyes agrees.

He said there is a great effort to organize more farm hubs and get the fresh food to where it is needed most.

Through its Bronx Green-Up program, or BGU, the New York Botanical Garden has long offered support to community gardens. When the pandemic hit, it organized online meetings to help solve issues. And BGU provided¹⁴ more than 10,000 small herb and vegetable plants.

Early in the pandemic, the program leaders realized "that food insecurity has always been a big issue in the Bronx," says Ursula Chanse. She is the program's director.

"There's definitely¹⁵ a lot of community gardening interest now, and more urban farm spaces," Chanse says.

Words in This Story

Hub – n. the central and most active part or place

Sauce – n. a thick liquid that is eaten with or on food to add flavor¹⁶ to it

Resilient – n. able to become strong, healthy, or successful again after something bad happens

Access – n. a way of being able to use or get something

Print – v. to use a machine to produce books, newspapers, money, et cetera (gerund form: printing)

Pepper – n. a hollow¹⁷ vegetable that is usually red, green, or yellow and that is eaten raw or cooked

Tomato – n. a round, soft, red fruit that is eaten raw or cooked and that is often used in salads, sandwiches and sauces

Currency – n. the money that a country uses

Herb – n. a plant or a part of a plant that is used as medicine or to give flavor to food

1 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

2 highly   

adv.高度地，极，非常；非常赞许地

参考例句：

• It is highly important to provide for the future.预先做好准备非常重要。
• The teacher speaks very highly of the boy's behaviour.老师称赞这个男孩的表现。

3 productive   

adj.能生产的，有生产价值的，多产的

参考例句：

• We had a productive meeting that solved some problems.我们开了一个富有成效的会议，解决了一些问题。
• Science and technology are part of the productive forces.科学技术是生产力。

4 rural   

adj.乡下的，田园的，乡村风味的

参考例句：

• He lived a rural life.他过着田园生活。
• We left the city for a rural home.我们离开城市，去农村安家。

5 disease   

n.疾病，弊端

参考例句：

• The doctors are trying to stamp out the disease.医生正在尽力消灭这种疾病。
• He fought against the disease for a long time.他同疾病做了长时间的斗争。

6 diabetes   

n.糖尿病

参考例句：

• In case of diabetes, physicians advise against the use of sugar.对于糖尿病患者，医生告诫他们不要吃糖。
• Diabetes is caused by a fault in the insulin production of the body.糖尿病是由体內胰岛素分泌失调引起的。

7 equity   

n.公正，公平，（无固定利息的）股票

参考例句：

• They shared the work of the house with equity.他们公平地分担家务。
• To capture his equity,Murphy must either sell or refinance.要获得资产净值，墨菲必须出售或者重新融资。

8 deserted   

adj.荒芜的，荒废的，无人的，被遗弃的

参考例句：

• The deserted village was filled with a deathly silence.这个荒废的村庄死一般的寂静。
• The enemy chieftain was opposed and deserted by his followers.敌人头目众叛亲离。

9 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

10 reproduce   

v.生育，繁殖，复制，重做

参考例句：

• The machine can reproduce a key in two minutes.这机器能在两分钟内复制一把钥匙。
• The picture will reproduce well.这照片会印得很清楚。

11 supervisory   

adj.监督的；管理的

参考例句：

• Have you ever done supervisory work? 你担任过管理工作吗？ 来自辞典例句
• Others, however, remain reluctant to strengthen supervisory powers at the European level. 然而，还有一些国家仍不愿强化欧盟层面的监管权力。 来自互联网

12 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》

13 launch   

vt.发动，推出；发射；n.发射，下水，投产

参考例句：

• The makers are about to launch out a new product.制造商们马上要生产一种新产品。
• Would it be wise to launch into this rough sea?在这样汹涌的大海中游泳明智吗？

14 provided   

conj.假如，若是；adj.预备好的，由...供给的

参考例句：

• Provided it's fine we will have a pleasant holiday.如果天气良好，我们的假日将过得非常愉快。
• I will come provided that it's not raining tomorrow.如果明天不下雨，我就来。

15 definitely   

adv.一定地，肯定地；明确地，确切地

参考例句：

• The team will definitely lose if he doesn't play.如果他不参加比赛，这个队肯定会输。
• I shall definitely be home before six o'clock.6点以前，我一定回家。

16 flavor   

n.味，滋味，味道；风味；vt.调味，加味于

参考例句：

• I like the flavor of chocolate.我喜欢巧克力的味道。
• Each flavor was totally unique.每一种味道都是独一无二的。

17 hollow   

adj.空的，中空的，空心的；空洞的，无价值的

参考例句：

• The boys scraped out a hollow place for planting trees.那些孩子挖了个坑准备栽树。
• Bamboo is a sort of hollow plant.竹子是一种中空的植物。