VOA慢速英语2013 A Flower in Winter: The Story of the Poinsettia

 

A Flower in Winter: The Story of the Poinsettia

 

From VOA Learning¹ English, this is the Agriculture Report in Special English.

Poinsettias are the best-selling potted flowering plant in the United States. Red poinsettias are a traditional part of Christmas celebrations, which is why almost all of them are sold at wintertime. The Department of Agriculture estimates² that Americans bought $250 million worth of poinsettias last year.

The poinsettia is native to Central America and needs warmth to grow. Bright red poinsettias are the best known. But there are about one hundred different kinds, in colors including white, pink, yellow and purple. 

The flowers of the poinsettia are very small. Around the flowers are colorful leaves called bracts. These bracts are what give the plants their beauty.

The poinsettia is named for Joel Roberts Poinsett from South Carolina. In 1825 President John Quincy Adams appointed him as the United States' first minister to Mexico. Poinsett had an interest in plants. He saw the colorful plants growing in the wild. Wild poinsettias can grow up to four meters tall. He liked them so much that he sent some cuttings back to the United States.

The botanical name for the plant is Euphorbia pulcherrima. In Latin³, that means "most beautiful euphorbia." There are hundreds of related⁴ plants, including rubber trees, trees that produce castor and tung oil, and the cassava, a root crop.

People who are allergic⁵ to the latex produced by rubber trees can develop a mild skin rash⁶ from poinsettia plants. Babies and pets that chew on poinsettias can get sick. But experts say the plant is not as poisonous as some people think.

In the 1920s, Albert Ecke and his son Paul became interested in the poinsettia’s ability to flower in winter. Paul Ecke thought it would be a good plant to display at Christmastime.

They started a farm near Encinitas, California. At first, Paul Ecke, and later his son, grew large plants in fields. Then they sent them to growers by train. Growers would divide the large plants into cuttings, to raise smaller ones in greenhouses⁷ until the holidays.

In the 1960s came poinsettias that grew best in containers. The Eckes started to sell cuttings from these new plants. Today Ecke Ranch⁸ remains⁹ a major supplier in the United States and around the world. In August, Paul Ecke's grandson announced that the company was joining the Dutch-based Agribio Group.

1 learning   

n.学问，学识，学习；动词learn的现在分词

参考例句：

• When you are learning to ride a bicycle,you often fall off.初学骑自行车时，常会从车上掉下来。
• Learning languages isn't just a matter of remembering words.学习语言不仅仅是记些单词的事。

2 estimates   

估计

参考例句：

• Unofficial estimates put the figure at over two million. 非官方的估计数字为200万以上。
• We got estimates from three different contractors before accepting the lowest. 我们得到3个承包商的报价后，接受了最低的报价。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 Latin   

adj.拉丁的，拉丁语的，拉丁人的；n.拉丁语

参考例句：

• She learned Latin without a master.她无师自通学会了拉丁语。
• Please use only Latin characters.请仅使用拉丁文字符。

4 related   

adj.有关系的，有关联的，叙述的，讲述的

参考例句：

• I am not related to him in any way.我和他无任何关系。
• We spent days going through all related reference material.我们花了好多天功夫查阅所有有关的参考资料。

5 allergic   

adj.过敏的，变态的

参考例句：

• Alice is allergic to the fur of cats.艾丽斯对猫的皮毛过敏。
• Many people are allergic to airborne pollutants such as pollen.许多人对空气传播的污染物过敏，比如花粉。

6 rash   

adj.轻率的；n.（皮）疹，爆发的一连串

参考例句：

• My skin has broken out in an itchy rash.我的皮肤上突然长出一片让人发痒的皮疹。
• Don't be rash in making your decision.别轻率做出决定。

7 greenhouses   

温室，花房( greenhouse的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Cypress and redwood are seldom used in the superstructure of commercial greenhouses. 扁柏和美州红松很少用于商用温室的上部结构。
• They grew tomatoes in two greenhouses, each with a CD-player inside. 他们在两个温室里种西红柿，每个里面都有一个CD播放机。

8 ranch   

n.大牧场，大农场

参考例句：

• He went to work on a ranch.他去一个大农场干活。
• The ranch is in the middle of a large plateau.该牧场位于一个辽阔高原的中部。

9 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。