Snap Beans

By Mario Ritter

Broadcast: October 21, 2003

This is Steve Ember with the VOA Special English Agriculture Report.
Snap¹ beans possess the good qualities of other beans, but they may be less well known. Snap beans are native to the Americas. They are harvested and served inside their covering, called a 1)pod. Most kinds of snap beans are green, but some have yellow or purple pods.
Snap beans are picked when they are young. Fresh ones break in half with a sound like the snap of two fingers. But the pods and the beans inside are soft enough to cook easily and eat.
In the United States, there are different names for snap beans. Some people call them string beans. That is because earlier kinds had strings² that had to be removed from the pods. Other names are green beans or wax beans, which are yellow.
Pole beans are closely related to other kinds of snap beans. Farmers grow these long, thin plants on 2)sticks or 3)poles for support. Some pole beans can be harvested up to ten times in a season. But pole beans require more labor³. They are not easily harvested by machine like snap beans grown on short plants.
Snap beans have a short growing period, forty-five to sixty days. They are sold fresh, canned or frozen⁴. They grow easily. But too much water in the soil will cause disease in the roots.
The soil should be loose. Snap beans should be planted in different areas from year to year to avoid disease carried in the soil. Like all beans and peas, snap beans release 4)nitrogen into the soil. So they provide natural fertilizer.
The world crop is about one-thousand-five-hundred-million kilograms. France, Mexico, Iraq and 5)Argentina are big producers. But the United States is the biggest producer and importer of snap beans. After years of decrease, Americans are again eating more of this traditional vegetable with their evening meal.
In the United States, the Agriculture Department says prices have moderately increased even while production has risen. American imports increase during the winter months. The top growing season is May through October.
Beans are naturally high in 6)protein. But they provide higher quality protein when eaten with a grain like rice or wheat. Beans are also high in vitamins A, B and C. And they contain a lot of fiber⁵, a vegetable material that many people do not get enough of in their diet.
This VOA Special English Agriculture Report was written by Mario Ritter. This is Steve Ember.

注释：
1) pod [pCd] n.扁豆层, 豆荚, 蚕茧
2) stick [stik] n.棍, 棒, 手杖
3) pole [pEul] n.棒, 柱, 杆, 竿
4) nitrogen [5naitrEdVEn] n.(化)氮
5) Argentina [7B:dVEn5ti:nE] n.阿根廷(南美洲南部国家)
6) protein [5prEuti:n] n.(生化)蛋白质

 

1 snap   

n.啪地移动，突然断掉；v.猛咬，咬断，谩骂，砰然关上

参考例句：

• He broke off the twig with a snap.他啪地一声把那根树枝折断了。
• These earrings snap on with special fasteners.这副耳环是用特制的按扣扣上去的。

2 strings   

n.弦

参考例句：

• He sat on the bed,idly plucking the strings of his guitar.他坐在床上，随意地拨着吉他的弦。
• She swept her fingers over the strings of the harp.她用手指划过竖琴的琴弦。

3 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

4 frozen   

adj.冻结的，冰冻的

参考例句：

• He was frozen to death on a snowing night.在一个风雪的晚上，他被冻死了。
• The weather is cold and the ground is frozen.天寒地冻。

5 fiber   

n.纤维，纤维质

参考例句：

• The basic structural unit of yarn is the fiber.纤维是纱的基本结构单元。
• The material must be free of fiber clumps.这种材料必须无纤维块。