Text ВSweet clover for soil improvement
Sweet clover is considered to be one of the best legumes for soil improvement. The heavy, deeply penetrating and widely branching tap root tends to open up the subsoil (подпочва). Subsoil minerals not available to plants with shallow root systems are brought to the surface, and when the sweet clover plants decay, the nutrients contained in these minerals are made available for other crops. The decay of plowed under sweet clover results in a marked improvement of aeration, drainage and the general physical condition of the soil.
Best results are usually obtained when sweet clover is not plowed under until the plants are 6 to 12 inches tall in spring of the second year. At this time the plants already contain most of the accumulated nitrogen and it is still sufficiently early to plant corn or some other cultivated crop.
The fertilizer value of sweet clover plowed under in the fall of the first year is nearly the same as that plowed in spring of the second year. But fall plowing seldom kills the sweet clover plants and they are likely to come up the following spring as weeds in the succeeding crop. It is primarily for this reason that late fall plowing is not recommended.
5. Arrange the questions so that they serve as a plan to the text, then answer them.
1. Why is it recommended to plow sweet clover under in the fall?
2. How does the tap root of sweet clover influence the soil?
3. What are the advantages of plowing sweet clover under in spring?
4. What is the result of sweet clover decay?
6. Read text C without a dictionary and title it. Render the main idea of the text briefly. Summarise text С in Russian or in English .
Text С
There are several ways of establishing a pasture. The radical method is to plow an old pasture, to cultivate it until free of weeds, and to sow the seed into a clean seedbed. Complete cultivation allows the farmer to conserve water in the soil, and it has the effect of reducing competition between the pasture seedlings and other plants such as weeds and native grasses. Cultivation also makes some nutrients which benefit young plants more available.
Sub-surface sowing is a method of drilling seeds into an existing pasture with the aim of obtaining the pasture of a needed composition. From 10 to 20% of the seeds may be expected to germinate and grow when this method is used. In general, grass seeds sown in this way cannot compete with the native plants, but the method is more successful with legumes.
Whichever (какой бы … ни) method of establishment is used, it is usually found that the species with large seeds are established more easily. The larger seeds carry more food and the seedlings grow more rapidly.
With all methods of pasture establishment best results follow the use of fertilizers. If pastures are not fertilized at all weeds may become a problem. It is due to the fact that weeds tolerate low soil fertility and will grow quite well in the soil which is too poor for the growth of pasture plants.
Listening and Speaking Focus
Watch the video: Tips from our Team - Guidelines for Successful Perennial Pasture Establishment
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v2ybGu3nPFU (accessed 01.11.2022).
a) answer the questions below:
1. What steps should be taken to renovate or establish a new perennial pasture to avoid wasting time and money?
2. How do you understand if a pasture needs to be established or renovated?
3. What is a critical part of the process when determining whether to renovate a pasture and why?
4. How to understand what species to plant suitable for your climate and or soil type and if they are suitable for your pet? Who can help you figure this out?
b) make a summary of the video.
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c) discussion: What is a key to long-term productivity of perennial pastures?
Учебное издание
Бабушкина Лариса Евгеньевна
Васильченко Татьяна Анатольевна
Зайцев Алексей Анатольевич
Рябчикова Вера Георгиевна
Синицына Ирина Андреевна
ОСНОВЫ АГРОНОМИИ
НА АНГЛИЙСКОМ ЯЗЫКЕ
Учебное пособие
Издается в авторской редакции
Обложка художника ___________
Компьютерная верстка __________________
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Подписано в печать Формат 60х84/16
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Отпечатано в типографии
РГАУ-МСХА имени К.А. Тимирязева
Москва, Тимирязевская ул., 44 Тел.: 8 (499) 977-00-12; 977-40-64
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