PBS高端访谈:废弃的圣诞树怎么处理

Judy Woodruff: And now to our "NewsHour" Shares, something that caught our eye that might be of interest to you, too. With Christmas season over, one question that gets raised almost every year is what to do with all those trees. As Brian Sullivan of PBS station WGBY in Springfield, Massachusetts reports, one farm has a novel solution.

Brian Sullivan: This pile of undecorated Christmas trees serves as a reminder¹ that the holiday season is officially over, which can be a grim prospect² for many of us, knowing we still have about three more months of winter ahead. Just don't tell the Nigerian dwarf³ goats of Hokaheh Farm that. To them, the sound of one of these balsam firs hitting the ground might as well be a dinner bell to a field full of hungry farmhands. Named after a battle cry said to be used by Crazy Horse and his men before the Battle at Little Bighorn, Hokaheh is a hillside farm in the Berkshires. It's owned by a local doctor and home to 19 of these tree-eating goats. Dr. Kerstin Voss bought this 12-acre property in Housatonic back in 2012. But this is the first year since she has been here that they decided⁴ to have a Christmas tree drop-off. And as luck would have it, it's a huge hit with the goats.

John Condon: I never knew that goats would eat them until I came here. I posted it on our Facebook page, and it kept getting shared. And next thing I knew, I was getting phone calls and messages from all over the place. And the response has been overwhelming. We're getting a ton of trees. It's really taken off.

Brian Sullivan: While they appear to be going to town on this one-time living room showpiece, a popular misconception is that goats will eat anything. We can probably thank the old Saturday morning cartoons for reinforcing the image of them eating tin cans and anything else that gets in their way. The truth is, goats are actually pickier eaters than many people realize.

John Condon: They basically know what to eat and what not to eat. If something's not good for them or they don't like it, they will shun⁵ away from it. They are very clean eaters. If you give them something they really love, like a piece of carrot or a piece of apple, and they drop it on the ground, it's done. They won't touch it. To them, it's dirty. They're cleaner eaters than I am.

Brian Sullivan: It should also be noted⁶ that all trees must be clear of ornaments⁷ and any other decorative⁸ debris⁹ before they're to be consumed. Metal hooks and tinsel can do major damage to their stomachs. The goats usually don't eat the trees in their entirety either. But since nothing goes to waste here, whatever doesn't get finished just ends up in the compost pile. The goats here are for breeding purposes only. They share the space on the farm with a donkey, a pony¹⁰ and several chickens and roosters. The whole atmosphere is a little slice of heaven on earth for Condon, who originally came to Hokaheh farm to do a week's worth of work. He's now been here for the better part of a year, and has designs on future endeavors for the farm.

John Condon: It's hard to explain, but, like, the first time I came to this farm, I got a feeling, like this was the place I have always wanted to be my whole life, and here I am. This place, there is just something, I can't put it into words. There's just something magical about being here, having animals who love you as much as you love them, working the land, growing things. It's just, it's incredible. For the "PBS NewsHour," I'm Brian Sullivan in Housatonic, Massachusetts.

Judy Woodruff: A whole new way of about to think about what happens to your Christmas tree.

朱迪·伍德拉夫：欢迎收听《新闻一小时》，我们可能对同样的事情感兴趣。圣诞季刚过，每年这个时候都会有一个问题出现——圣诞树如何处理。根据我台记者布莱恩·苏利文从马萨诸塞州斯普林菲尔德发回的报道，有一家农场有一个独特的解决方案。

布莱恩·苏利文：未加装饰的圣诞树堆积成山，它们的存在提醒着人们——圣诞季已经正式结束了。但很多人的感受可能不是那么明显，毕竟还有3个月，冬天才会彻底过去。

但是这件事可不能让Hokaheh农场的尼日利亚矮山羊知道。对它们而言，这种香脂冷杉撞击地面的声音好似吃饭铃，呼唤着田地里饥肠辘辘的农产工人。这个农场的名字是以战斗口号来命名的，据说这口号，即Hokaheh，曾为疯马部落所用。而Hokaheh现在是伯克郡山坡上的一家农场。农场主是当地的一个医生，这里养着19只以圣诞树为食的山羊。

2012年，克斯廷·沃斯在胡沙托尼克河买了这块面积12英亩的土地。但是她刚来这的第一年，也就是今年，大家就决定所缩减圣诞树的使用量了。而碰巧山羊们又很需要以圣诞树为食。

约翰·康登：我来了这儿之后才知道原来山羊会吃圣诞树。我在脸书上发了这条状态，转发量很大。然后我就接到了来自各地的电话和短信。大家的响应都很热烈。我们收到了无数的圣诞树，可以充分满足山羊的需要了。

布莱恩·苏利文：虽然山羊存在于地球已经有很久的时间，但很多人依然对它有一个误解，即山羊什么都能吃。这很有可能是因为以前周六早上放的卡通片总是不断固化着人们对山羊的印象——吃锡罐头和遇到的一切东西。但事实是：山羊比很多人以为的要挑剔的多。

约翰·康登：山羊知道自己想吃什么、不想吃什么。如果有什么东西对它们不利或者它们不喜欢，它们就会避开。它们喜欢吃干净的东西。如果有人给了它们喜欢的东西，比如一根萝卜或者一块苹果，但这个东西掉在了地上，那就全剧终了。因为他们不会碰的。对它们来说，这食物已经脏了。他们比我吃的还要干净。

布莱恩·苏利文：还有一点要注意——所有树上必须没有装饰品，山羊才会吃。金属挂钩和金属箔会对它们的胃肠产生重大损害。如果吃到这样的东西，那山羊通常一辈子都不会再吃树了。但因为这里是物尽其用的，所以没用完的东西最后都会成为肥料。这里的山羊只用于饲养。跟它们一起生活在农场的有一只驴、一匹马、几只小鸡和公鸡。这里的整体氛围对于康登来说犹如天堂，而他一开始来到这个农场就做了一整周的工作。他现在大部分时间都会在农场里，还为农场未来的构造做了许多设计。

约翰·康登：很难接受，但我第一次来这里以后，我就觉得这里是我一辈子都想待的地方，所以我现在依然在这里。这里有一种东西是我无法用言语表达的。这里有一种魔力，让你和这里的动物相亲相爱，在土地上耕作。这太不可思议了。感谢收听布莱恩·苏利文从马萨诸塞州胡沙托尼克河发回的《新闻一小时》报道。

朱迪·伍德拉夫：感谢您为我们提供了一种处理圣诞树的新方法。

1 reminder   

n.提醒物，纪念品；暗示，提示

参考例句：

• I have had another reminder from the library.我又收到图书馆的催还单。
• It always took a final reminder to get her to pay her share of the rent.总是得发给她一份最后催缴通知，她才付应该交的房租。

2 prospect   

n.前景，前途；景色，视野

参考例句：

• This state of things holds out a cheerful prospect.事态呈现出可喜的前景。
• The prospect became more evident.前景变得更加明朗了。

3 dwarf   

n.矮子，侏儒，矮小的动植物；vt.使…矮小

参考例句：

• The dwarf's long arms were not proportional to his height.那侏儒的长臂与他的身高不成比例。
• The dwarf shrugged his shoulders and shook his head. 矮子耸耸肩膀，摇摇头。

4 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

5 shun   

vt.避开，回避，避免

参考例句：

• Materialists face truth,whereas idealists shun it.唯物主义者面向真理，唯心主义者则逃避真理。
• This extremist organization has shunned conventional politics.这个极端主义组织有意避开了传统政治。

6 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

7 ornaments   

n.装饰( ornament的名词复数 )；点缀；装饰品；首饰v.装饰，点缀，美化( ornament的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• The shelves were chock-a-block with ornaments. 架子上堆满了装饰品。
• Playing the piano sets up resonance in those glass ornaments. 一弹钢琴那些玻璃饰物就会产生共振。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 decorative   

adj.装饰的，可作装饰的

参考例句：

• This ware is suitable for decorative purpose but unsuitable for utility.这种器皿中看不中用。
• The style is ornate and highly decorative.这种风格很华丽，而且装饰效果很好。

9 debris   

n.瓦砾堆，废墟，碎片

参考例句：

• After the bombing there was a lot of debris everywhere.轰炸之后到处瓦砾成堆。
• Bacteria sticks to food debris in the teeth,causing decay.细菌附着在牙缝中的食物残渣上，导致蛀牙。

10 pony   

adj.小型的；n.小马

参考例句：

• His father gave him a pony as a Christmas present.他父亲给了他一匹小马驹作为圣诞礼物。
• They made him pony up the money he owed.他们逼他还债。