VOA标准英语2012--Hydroponic Farmer Produces Year-Round Harvest

Hydroponic Farmer Produces Year-Round Harvest

Mary Ellen Taylor sells her produce at weekend farmers markets near Washington, D.C. The heads of lettuce¹, still attached to their roots, are popular and she has many repeat customers.

“The lettuce just tastes fabulous," says Betsy Kulick, one of her regulars. "We can come here year round even in January, February and March. The lettuce is very green and tastes just as good then as it does in summer.”

Taylor grows the lettuce and other salad greens on her family farm in Loudoun County, Virginia, about 80 kilometers from Washington. She grows the food plants in a greenhouse, without any soil, on a diet of nutrient-rich water.

It's called hydroponic farming. Although the technique has been around for thousands of years, it has filled a very small niche² in modern agriculture, especially in the United States, where large tracts³ of land and other resources are available. 

Taylor harvests 4,000 heads of lettuce weekly in her two hydroponic greenhouses all year round. That's why she named her farm Endless Summer Harvest. She has a dozen part-time employees and frequent visitors from around the world. 

“Several weeks ago an investor⁴ group from Botswana came to visit with us," Taylor says. "We had farmers from Afghanistan here that were visiting, because this would be an ideal controlled environment to bring to Afghanistan where the climate is so harsh."

Taylor's hydroponic crops are protected from the harsh elements from planting to harvest.

It starts with seeds being planted in the nursery. After they germinate⁵, the little plants stay in the nursery for two weeks. Then they're moved to a greenhouse and placed into gutters⁶, where they'll grow to market size.

They're nourished sustainably, using recycled water.

“The tank has 600 gallons [2000 liters] of water with nutrients," Taylor says. "It continuously flows in and out of that tank after it has gone through the system and all of the plants’ roots.” 

According to Taylor, the two greenhouses take up a little over 1,000 square meters of land but produce the equivalent of a conventional five-hectare farm.

“We have established that it is so productive on small pieces of land," Taylor says, "that it can be closer to major metropolitan⁷ areas.” 

Besides farmers markets, Taylor sells her fresh produce to specialty⁸ grocery stores. 

“It is incredibly popular," says Don Rodon, owner of The Organic Butcher of McLean. "We have a great following.” 

At 1789, a restaurant in Washington, D.C., chef Anthony Lombardo uses the hydroponic lettuces⁹ in his signature salads.

“They [the clients] really like the salad a lot," he says. "We get a lot of positive feedback about the salad.”

And that's translating into brisk business for hydroponic farmer Taylor.

“People are so into buying local food. Ninety percent of Americans eat lettuce every day. Our business, while other businesses are tanking, is just exploding," she says. "We are a retail¹⁰ farm phenomenon here in America.” 

Taylor, who enjoys being known as "the lettuce lady," plans to double the size of her farm this year.

1 lettuce   

n.莴苣；生菜

参考例句：

• Get some lettuce and tomatoes so I can make a salad.买些莴苣和西红柿，我好做色拉。
• The lettuce is crisp and cold.莴苣松脆爽口。

2 niche   

n.壁龛；合适的职务(环境、位置等)

参考例句：

• Madeleine placed it carefully in the rocky niche. 玛德琳小心翼翼地把它放在岩石壁龛里。
• The really talented among women would always make their own niche.妇女中真正有才能的人总是各得其所。

3 tracts   

大片土地( tract的名词复数 )； 地带； （体内的）道； （尤指宣扬宗教、伦理或政治的）短文

参考例句：

• vast tracts of forest 大片大片的森林
• There are tracts of desert in Australia. 澳大利亚有大片沙漠。

4 investor   

n.投资者，投资人

参考例句：

• My nephew is a cautious investor.我侄子是个小心谨慎的投资者。
• The investor believes that his investment will pay off handsomely soon.这个投资者相信他的投资不久会有相当大的收益。

5 germinate   

v.发芽；发生；发展

参考例句：

• Seeds will not germinate without water.没有水，种子是不会发芽的。
• Can thin and hollow seeds germinate?瘦瘪的种子能够发芽吗？

6 gutters   

（路边）排水沟( gutter的名词复数 )； 阴沟； （屋顶的）天沟； 贫贱的境地

参考例句：

• Gutters lead the water into the ditch. 排水沟把水排到这条水沟里。
• They were born, they grew up in the gutters. 他们生了下来，以后就在街头长大。

7 metropolitan   

adj.大城市的，大都会的

参考例句：

• Metropolitan buildings become taller than ever.大城市的建筑变得比以前更高。
• Metropolitan residents are used to fast rhythm.大都市的居民习惯于快节奏。

8 specialty   

n.(speciality)特性，特质；专业，专长

参考例句：

• Shell carvings are a specialty of the town.贝雕是该城的特产。
• His specialty is English literature.他的专业是英国文学。

9 lettuces   

n.莴苣，生菜（ lettuce的名词复数 ）；生菜叶

参考例句：

• My lettuces have gone to seed. 我种的莴苣已结子。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Are these lettuces home-grown or did you buy them in the market? 这些生菜是自家种的呢，还是你在市场上买的？ 来自辞典例句

10 retail   

v./n.零售；adv.以零售价格

参考例句：

• In this shop they retail tobacco and sweets.这家铺子零售香烟和糖果。
• These shoes retail at 10 yuan a pair.这些鞋子零卖10元一双。