4 Carrot

Carrot is a cool-season vegetable grown for the thickened root. Carrots are eaten both raw and cooked and they can be stored for winter use.

Soil Preparation. Carrots grow best in soil that is deep, stone free and fertile, it will be difficult to grow a successful crop of carrots if you are growing them in clay or soil that is extremely heavy.

The bed should be dug in autumn adding a small amount of leaf mould if required. You should not add compost or manure to the soil as this makes carrots split.

Sowing and Planting. Carrot seeds are very small so when sowing it will be better to mix the seeds with some fine sand. Carrots can be sown outdoors between April and June. You should sow the seeds thinly half an inch deep in rows that are 6 inches apart, carrots are not big plants so can be planted close to each other.

Looking after the Plant. Once the seedlings are large enough to handle they should be thinned to two inches apart. It is vital that you try and disturb the plants as little as possible, carrot fly can smell carrot tops and once they have been bruised they will come and eat your carrots.

After that just general maintenance is required, watering when dry and weeding weekly.

Harvesting. You can begin harvesting carrots from July right up until late October or even early November. Lift the carrots with a folk being careful not to damage the roots or bruise the leaves as carrot fly can still be a problem at this stage.

Nutritional Value and Health Benefits. Carrots is rich in beta carotene. The beta carotene is converted to vitamin A in the body. Beta carotene is also a powerful antioxidant effective in fighting against some forms of cancer, especially lung cancer. It may also protect against cancer and heart disease.

(1400)

Words to the text:

a cool-season vegetable – холодостойкий овощ

thickened -утолщенный

stone free –без камней

seedlings – рассада, саженцы

as little as possible – как можно меньше

carrot fly –муха морковная

lung cancer – рак легких

4.1 Say if the sentences are true or false:

1) Carrots grow best in deep, stone free and fertile soil.

2) Carrots can be sown outdoors between August and October.

3) Carrots can be harvested between August and October.

4) Carrots are rich in beta carotene.

5 Cucumber

Cucumber is a tender, warm-season vegetable that produces well when given proper care and protection. Cucumbers are difficult to grow, this is mainly because a constant high temperature is required throughout the growing season and it takes a lot of effort to grow these vegetables.

Soil Preparation. Cucumbers are best grown in pots and grow bags inside the greenhouse. It is recommended to use quite large pots (ten inch pots). That’s all the soil preparation that cucumbers need really as they are not generally grown in boarder soil or outdoors. If they are grown outdoors, they generally grow with little success.

Sowing and Planting. Seeds should be sown indoors in late February or early March. Seeds should be sown on their sides in 3 inch pots at a depth of about half an inch. Seeds should be watered and left to germinate.

Plants should be transplanted into their permanent positions in early April, their permanent positions being grow bags or large pots. You should plant one plant per pot or two plants per grow bag.

Looking After the Plants. Keep the plants well watered but making sure the compost is never waterlogged. You should remove male flowers from most cucumber varieties. The female flowers should have a small cucumber growing behind the flower while male flowers just have a thin stalk inside the flower.

Harvesting. You can begin harvesting cucumbers once the cucumbers have reached a reasonable size. Cucumbers usually are eaten when immature. The best size depends upon the use and variety. A cucumber is of the highest quality when it is uniformly green, firm and crisp. The cucumber fruit grows rapidly to harvest size and should be picked at least every other day. The most common problem is that people harvest cucumbers too late after they mature therefore stopping other cucumbers being produced on the plant. You should remove cucumbers from the plant using a sharp knife.

Nutritional Value and Health Benefits. Cucumbers add a crisp snap to salads and sandwiches, however they are not a very good source of nutrients. The most abundant nutrient in cucumber is water. A small amount of beta carotene is found in the green peel.

(1800)

Words to the text:

warm-season vegetable –теплолюбивый овощ

waterlogged - заболоченный

immature - незрелый

a crisp snap – хрустящий вкус

5.1 Answer the questions:

1) Is cucumber a warm-season or a cool-season crop?

2) Why should male flowers be removed from most cucumber varieties?

3) When is a cucumber of the highest quality?

4) What is the nutritional value of cucumber?