Fill in the blanks with the appropriate words from the text. 1. Corn is well adapted to the where it reaches its best development

1. Corn is well adapted to the … … where it reaches its best development. 2. Corn … to a tropical plant. 3. Corn was … into Europe by Columbus. 4. The corn stem has a hard … coat and a soft … pith. 5. Most  of  the  early  …  varieties  are  used  for ….

6. The seed must be planted deep enough to get sufficient … for its …. 7. Soil  …  is  more  important  for  corn  than  for  other  ….

8. Great … in the size of corn plant and the time of its … is mainly due to the … in which the crop is grown. 9. The depth of corn seeding … … 1 to 3 inches depending on the soil temperature.

 

Agree or disagree with the following statements (True or False).

1. The main aim of cultivating corn is to conserve moisture in the soil and to aerate it. 2. Cold weather is known to be favorable for the production of corn. 3. Water requirements of corn are the highest at the beginning of the growing season. 4. Corn is grown primarily for the production of corn. 5. Corn reaches its best development in the temperate zone. 6. The usual height of the plant is 20 feet. 7. Corn does best on cold, poor and light soils. 8. Soil fertility is not very important for corn. 9. It is not very important to choose proper time for planting corn for obtaining good results. 10. The most convenient time to start planting corn is that of planting potato.

 

Translate the following sentences from English into Russian.

1. If planted too deeply, the seedlings of this crop will have some difficulty in reaching the surface of the soil. 2. When present in great amount in the soil, nitrogen is known to cause lodging of most cereals. 3. When young, weeds are easily controlled by proper cultivation. 4. Being of the same variety, the seeds may differ greatly in size and quality. 5. This plant is said to be affected by cold weather until well-rooted. 6. Though not sufficiently fertile for growing wheat, this soil can be used successfully for growing rye. 7. Unless planted deep enough, the corn seeds will not have sufficient moisture for rapid germination. 8. Though not so important as climatic conditions, soil properties must be also taken into consideration when choosing the crop to be grown.

 

Translate the following sentences into English using vocabulary list.

1. Кукуруза используется на корм скоту. 2. Сорта кукурузы  сильно  различаются  по  форме,  размеру  и  урожайности.

3. Кукуруза требует высокой температуры, обилие солнечного света и много влаги. 4. Кукуруза выращивается для многих целей. 5. Лучше всего кукуруза растёт на плодородных суглинках. 6. Прохладная погода приводит к низким урожаям этой культуры. 7. Почвенные и климатические условия определяют глубину посева. Обычная глубина – 2–3 дюйма. 8. Каковы главные цели выращивания кукурузы? 9. В течение периода быстрого роста кукуруза требует большого количества воды. 10. Производство кукурузы в северных регионах увеличилось в результате выведения скороспелых гибридов.

 

Answer the following questions.

1. What plants does corn belong to? 2. What are the leading countries in the production of corn? 3. Where is corn a native of? 4. Who introduced corn into Europe? 5. What is corn botanically? 6. What plant family does corn belong to? 7. What are corn roots? 8. Describe corn stems. 9. What are climatic requirements of corn? 10. How   many   days   does   the   growing  season  of  corn  last?

11. What  corn  varieties   are   grown  in   the  northern  regions?

12. What soils does corn grow best on?

 

Find key sentences in each paragraph. Make up the plan of retelling.

 

Give the short summary of text A.

Text B

Skim text B and find in it answers to the following questions.

1. What is the origin of corn? 2. What family of plants does corn belong to? 3. Is corn a warm weather plant? 4. Does it require much water? 5. On what soils does corn do best? 6. What does corn planting depth vary with? 7. What is corn grown for?

 

Corn Requirements

Corn is believed to have been a highly developed cultivated crop in the New World long before its discovery. The origin of corn is unknown since the plant has been found only under cultivation. Now corn is more widely distributed over the world than any other cereal crop. Corn is a member of the grass family. It is an extremely variable plant and there exist a large number of varieties that differ widely in size and shape. Corn is a warm-weather plant that requires high temperatures day and night during the growing season. It has been found to be highly susceptible to frost injury at the time of its growth. Actually corn requires a relatively small amount of water for each pound of dry matter produced, its high water requirement being due to the potential high acre production. When growing rapidly in July and August, corn needs much water because of the high rate of evaporation from the soil and transpiration from the leaves.

Corn makes its best growth if planted in a fertile, well-drained, loam soil. Besides, soils of high inorganic matter are ideal for this crop, for they have a high water-holding capacity. In addition to fertile soil and adequate moisture an abundance of sunshine is necessary for the plants to manufacture large quantities of food to be stored in the grain. Cool, cloudy weather results in heavy vegetative growth and low yields of grain. The object is to plant corn at the depth that will provide optimum soil temperature and water and result in rapid germination. Corn planting depth varies widely with the soil conditions and climate. As corn should be planted deep enough to place the seed in contact with warm moist soil, the usual depth is 2 to 3 inches in rows from 30 to 40 inches apart. The soil being rather cold, the depth of 1 to 1 ½ inches may be advisable. Corn is cultivated primarily to control weeds and to a less extent to conserve moisture and aerate the soil. Corn is grown principally for grain, fodder, silage, pasturing. Nearly 90% of the corn grain is used directly as livestock feed. When cut for silage or harvested for fodder, corn does not usually leave the farm on which it is produced. Corn has numerous industrial uses. Its stems and leaves seem to have been used for making paper from the ancient times.

Notes:

the New World – Новый Свет

from the ancient times – с давних времен

water - holding capacity – способность удерживать влагу, влагоемкость

inch – дюйм

fodder – зеленый корм