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Reap What You Sow! 园艺在英国盛行

英语学习点: Gardening Vocabulary 和园艺有关的词汇

Odd things are happening to Brits... we seem to be developing green fingers!

People doing some gardening

Brits are developing green fingers!

The number of people growing their own fruit and veg has almost doubled in the past year, according to Gardeners' World magazine.

Gardens and allotments across the UK have been put to use as people discover the joys of home-grown produce.

But not everyone has space for a vegetable patch or a flowerbed. And sometimes a window box just isn't enough of a gardening challenge.

That's why some people have been turning to guerrilla gardening. This is when people plant flowers or vegetables in public spaces to make them greener and more pleasing to the eye.

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Many people would approve of prettifying towns and cities, but guerrilla gardening is not strictly legal. Therefore, this type of gardening often takes place in the dead of night.

But the stereotype of the keen gardener is not someone who wears combat boots and breaks the law. It is of someone who wears wellies and spends all their time in greenhouses and potting sheds. We expect such a person to know every aspect of how to tend and cultivate their plants.

Yet, despite the increase in people growing their own, more than half of the UK population still do not know when 18 out of the top 22 fruit and vegetables are in season, according to Gardeners' World.

It seems that Britain still has some way to go before we can justifiably be called a nation of gardeners.

Quiz 小测验

1. What has happened to British people's hands recently?

Nothing. To have green fingers is an idiom, meaning to be good at gardening.

2. Has gardening increased by over 100%?

No, it has almost doubled.

3. Is it possible to legally garden public property?

Yes, if you have an allotment, which is rented off the local authority.

4. Why do some people garden at night?

Because they are breaking the law by gardening illegally.

5. Is this statement true, false or not given? Brits who have started gardening recently still don't know when many fruit and vegetables are in season.

Not given. We know that more than half of the UK population don't know this information, but not whether these are the same people who have started gardening recently.

Glossary 词汇表 (收听发音, 请单击英语单词)