Grammar Exercises
1. Translate the following sentences into Russian paying attention to the Sequence of Tenses:
1) He said that he had weeded the flowers. 2) I was sure that she was weeding the flowers. 3) My mother informed me that they would weed the flowers in the evening. 4) He asked me where I lived. 5) I thought that you had already pruned the trees. 6) I was sure that he spoke French very well. 7) She said that Andrew had told her that he was cherishing the lilies. 8) He knows that you have weeded the flowers. 9) I hoped that I would find him at home. 10) He said that he had dug the ground.
2. Translate the following sentences from Russian into English:
1) Мы увидели, что наш сын играет в саду. 2) Она сказала, что мама уже прополола цветник. 3) Моя сестра сказала, что хочет выращивать ирисы. 4) Он спросил, где мы будем собирать урожай. 5) Я не думал, что вы все будете ждать меня. 6) Она спросила нас, кто хочет полить хризантемы. 7) Он сказал, что его мама сажала деревья уже более 2 часов. 8) Я знал, что мой брат увлекается ландшафтным дизайном. 9) Я боялся, что он не получит зарплату. 10) Мой друг позвонил мне и сказал, что болен и не сможет прийти ко мне на день рождения.
Speech Exercises
1. Answer the questions to the text:
1) When and where did the earliest evidence for ornamental gardens appear?
2) What can you say about the Hanging Gardens of Babylon?
3) When did gardening revive in Europe?
4) What cli5mate was in Egypt?
5) Where did the skilled gardeners work?
6) What kind of gardens could the rich people of Egypt afford?
7) Did the ancients feature the flowers like the iris, chrysanthemum, lily, and delphinium in garden scenes?
8) What duties did the skills gardeners have?
9) Are you fond of gardening?
10) What are your duties in gardening?
2. Retell the text
Text 7. Nikitsky Botanical Garden
The Nikitsky Botanical Garden, a unique preserve of Crimean nature and a supreme example of park architectural landscaping, is the largest scientific-research establishment in the south of Russia. More than 28,000 species and hybrids of various tropical plants have been collected in this treasury. The trees and shrubs (1,500 species) are planted in individual groups or picturesque clusters that blend into a single artistic design. There is also a wonderful rosarium and a special display of clematis and chrysanthemums.
Hundreds of thousands of visitors from Russia and from abroad come to Nikitsky Botanical Garden every day. It was founded in September 1812 as the Imperial Botanical Garden. For this purpose the site was chosen near Nikita, a village founded by Greek settlers four centuries before. Today, the Nikitsky Garden’s plant collection number more than 28,000 species, varieties and hybrids. Numerous visitors to the Garden show special interest in the great variety of subtropical trees. The Nikitsky arboretum, where more than 1,500 species of ornamental trees and shrubs are collected, covers an area of over 40 hectares and consists of four separate parks: the Upper Park, the Lower, the Maritime Park and the park on Cape Montedor.
A tour of the Nikitsky Garden begins with the Upper Park. It was laid out in typical landscape style during the last century. Here you can see rare species of conifers, ever-green shrubs, a splendid rosarium, a rock garden and displays of chrysanthemums and new varieties of the clematis.
Past the entrance to the Upper Park, in front of the main office building, there is a parterre. Chinese palms grow on the lawns of the parterre, a group of slender pyramidal cypresses and columnar English yews flank the path leading to the office building.
The Nikitsky rosarium is a really marvelous sight to behold. Here you will find various species of roses of native and foreign selection.
Chrysanthemums are the reigning beauty of the park in autumn.
Outstanding amidst the infinite wealth of greenery is the weeping glaucous Atlas cedar, a truly natural wonder whose boughs drop to the very ground. It is native to Algeria’s mountains and can be grown only through grafting. This tree terminates the Upper Park.
Here wide stairs descend to the Lower Park, the oldest section in the Nikitsky Garden. During the first years following its foundation palms and bamboos were imported from abroad. Today, you will find century-old groves of Lebanon cedars with their unusual flat crowns, mighty oaks and silvery olives. These groves have become unique monuments of nature. Sun-loving plants with thick pulpy leaves and stems are put outdoors in summer. They are mostly natives of Mexico: agaves, prickly-pears, etc. next to them, at the end of the palm alley, there is a decorative Japanese banana, noted for its large species.
The Nikitsky arboretum wears its green attire all the year round. Even in winter, when the ground is covered with a thin snowy carpet, you can still see flowering shrubs here and there. At all seasons of the year the Nikitsky Botanical Garden is visited by many tourists.
ACTIVE VOCABULARY
preserve (зд.) заповедник
unique 1) единственный в своем роде; уникальный; ~ feature особенность конструкции 2) замечательный, необыкновенный
Crimean крымский
supreme 1) верховный, высший
landscape ландшафт, пейзаж
establishment учреждение, заведение
species [ 'spi:∫i:z] (pl без изменений) вид, разновидность
hybrid [ 'haιbrιd] гибрид, помесь
treasury сокровищница
shrub кустарник, куст
picturesque clusters живописные группы (пучки, гроздья, кусты)
blend смешивать(ся), сочетаться, гармонировать
rosarium [rכu'zeәrιәm] розарий
display выставка
clematis [ 'klemәtιs] ломонос, клематис
site участок, место
purpose намерение, цель
variety многообразие, множество
arboretum [ֽa:bә'ri:tәm] n (pl –ta, -tums) древесный питомник
ornamental декоративный
hectare гектар
to lay out разбивать (участок), планировать
rare редкий
conifer хвойное дерево
evergreen вечнозеленый
splendid великолепный, роскошный
rock горный, каменный
parterre цветник
lawn газон, лужайка
slender стройный
pyramidal пирамидальный
cypresses [ 'saιprәs] кипарис
columnar [kә'lΛmnә] стебельчатый
yew [ju:] тис
flank примыкать
path тропинка, дорожка
behold смотреть, созерцать
outstanding выдающийся, знаменитый
amidst среди
infinite безграничный
greenery зелень, растительность
glaucous 1) серовато-зеленый, серовато-голубой 2) тусклый
cedar [ 'si:dә] кедр
truly 1) правдиво 2) в самом деле, действительно
bough сук
drop зд. падать, спадать
grafting [ 'gra:ftιη] прививка (растения)
Algeria Алжир
terminate завершать(ся)
descend спускаться, сходить, снижаться
valuable ценный, дорогой
foundation основа, основание
bamboo [bæm'bu:] бамбук
palm [pa:m] пальма
grove роща, лесок
flat ровный, прямой
crown крона, верхушка дерева
mighty могущественный, громадный
oak дуб
olive маслина, олива (дерево, плод)
pulpy мягкий, сочный
agave агава
prickly-pears имеющие шипы (колючие) груши
alley аллея
noted знаменитый, известный
attire наряд
EXERCISES
Vocabulary Exercises
1. Practise the pronunciation of the following words:
preserve, Crimean, landscape, species, rosarium, treasury, chrysanthemum, variety, ornamental, arboretum, conifer, splendid, parterre, lawn, cypresses, columnar, path, greenery, cedar, grafting, prickly-pears