Carnivorous Plants

Carnivorous Plants 1/5

Carnivorous Plants

Pitcher plants

A. Answer these questions as best you can:

a) What is a carnivorous plant? Are you afraid of carnivorous plants?

b) What makes carnivorous plants different from other plants?

c) Have you ever seen a carnivorous plant?

B. i. Skim through the text and decide whether the following statements are true ( T ) or false ( F ):

a) Carnivorous plants are differentiated through the type of prey-trapping mechanism.

b) Carnivorous plants are demanding and they need a very good soil, water, light, humidity, temperature and fertilisers.

c) Many plants attract their prey easily with their sticky leaves.

Insectivorous plants Dionaea


ii. Read the text and suggest suitable headings for the paragraphs. 1. Carnivorous plants have started to attract more and more flower lovers due to their survival instinct: they can live in places poor in nutrients, feeding only on live insects. There are over 450 species divided into families which are differentiated through the type of prey-trapping mechanism, namely pitcher (Rom.ulcior) trap, cracker trap, adhesive trap, vesicular trap. 2. Carnivorous plants with a pitcher trap draw their prey by their sweet sap (Rom. sev) or by the color of the edges. One of the representatives of this species is Sarracenia, which has leaves in the shape of vertical pitchers (trumpet), inside which they catch the prey. It is not a demanding plant, although it needs a lot of sun. Soil should not contain nutrients, the acidity level should be medium, and watering should be made with rain water. Propagation is by rhizomes, once at 2-3 years, being planted directly in the ground during spring. Excessive watering can lead to grey mold and during hot days it can be attacked by lice (Rom. pduchi), due to the lack of humidity. Other plants with pitcher trap are Sarracenia alata, Sarracenia flava, Sarracenia purpurea. Nepenthes is another pitcher-herb, native to the jungles of Southeast Asia. Their leaves have at the ends a tendril (Rom. crcel), which help them climb the surrounding vegetation, and pitchers have on top a lid designed to keep rain water and the prey. It is perhaps the most spectacular, thanks to its size, color, and traps (some species have traps so great that birds or rats could fall victim to these mechanisms). 3. Carnivorous plants with cracker traps are represented by the famous plant Dionaea muscipula or Venus Flytrap. Its leaves are in the form of rosette, green, oval, composed of two lobes, with some stiff filaments along the edges, like a comb. When prey is placed between the two lobes, the latter close suddenly, blocking it and later on digesting it. In general, these plants feed on some flies during the summer, while during winter they enter a period of rest and do not require food. Dionaea should be watered only with rain water or distilled water, as it is suffering in the presence of chalk and the soil should consist of sand, peat (Rom. turb) and moss. The plant reproduces by dissolution or by sowing in March-April. To avoid drying, the plant must be kept at a proper temperature (13C in summer, at least 7 C in winter) and into a permanent wet mixture.

4. Carnivorous plants with adhesive trapping mechanism have in the composition of leaves a sticky substance that attracts the prey. This substance has high carbohydrate content and insects stick to the leaves when trying to fly, thus being suffocated. The best known plant of this type is Dew of Heaven and it is a species protected by law. It can be recognized by its white flowers, but also after the leaves, which have hairs on them meant to digest the prey. It is called the dew of heaven, because the sticky substances gather together in the form of drops of dew. Fat Sheet is a plant that resembles Primula (the green leaves are placed in the shape of a rosette, and the flowers are coloured). The leaves are covered with a sticky (Rom. lipicios) substance on which the prey sits, following the rolling of the prey and its digestion. It can be grown by plant lovers who have to provide shaded areas and wet land permanently (as in the other cases mentioned above, they are watered with rain water, and the soil shouldnt be soaked). Its propagation is accomplished through separation or by sowing in spring, and excessive moisture can lead to grey rot or lice. 5. Carnivorous plants with vesicular trap live in water and catch their prey with vesicular traps. Utricularia vulgaris is a common species in some countries, in lowland areas. Although it lives in water, its flowers are found on the surface. Utricularia catches fleas (Rom. purici), which are lured into the traps, special glands in vesicles removing the water. When the plants hairs are touched, the lid opens suddenly, and the prey is aspirated. The process takes about 15 minutes, after which the plant catches other victims. Other species included in this type are Utricularia aurea, Utricularia amethystine and Utricularia hamiltonii. 6. Other carnivorous plants have tubular leaves with spiral channels on the edges, whose walls secrete a sticky substance. Representative for this kind of plants is Genlisea, which is a semi-aquatic plant, usually found near Utricularieri. Its traps are found in the water and consist of some hairs on the leaves, allowing the easy entry of the victims, but making the escaping impossible. The prey remains stuck to the walls while it is digested. 7. Although their name sounds like a title worthy of a horror film, carnivorous plants are becoming increasingly popular among plant lovers. They are unusual flowers, but they certainly bring new spectacular elements into your house.

(Adapted from http://whatafy.com/carnivorous-plants.html; the images are taken from the same site. Accessed 27 Sept. 2012)


iii) Read the text more closely and answer the following questions: a) What do carnivorous plants eat? a) Name at least three ways of catching and digesting the prey. b) Which is the most spectacular carnivorous plant? Why? c) Identify in the text a species of carnivorous plant protected by law. How can it be recognised? d) What are the consequences of not growing the carnivorous plants properly? e) In your notebooks make a tree diagram representing the families of carnivorous plants:

C. i. Find in the text :

a) four expressions connected with soil; b) three expressions connected with water.

ii. Find in the text words and phrases close in meaning to the following: 1. A piece of equipment for catching animals or insects (paragraph 1) = 2. To grow from a parent plant and produce new plants (paragraph 2) = 3. A thin leafless curling stem by which a climbing plant fastens itself

to a support (paragraph 2) = 4. Black substance formed from decaying plants (paragraph 3) = 5. Very wet (paragraph 4) = 6. Small drops of water (paragraph 4) = 7. Very small insects without wings (paragraph 5) = 8. Cover for the open part of a container (paragraph 5) = 9. An animal hunted and eaten by another animal (paragraph 6) =

iii. a) Match the words from the first column with those in the second according to the text : due by divided of protected of consist into worthy to

b) Working in pairs, answer the following questions using the expressions above in the same order:

1. What's the reason for soil erosion? 2. How are carnivorous plants classified? 3. Is Dew of Heaven about to become extinct? 4. Could you describe the prey-trapping mechanism 5. Do you think carnivorous plants are useful?

c) Working in pairs, fill in the gaps with the correct expressions from the ones above:

1. The greenhouse is . 5 zones so that each food crop can be grown in proper soil and environmental conditions.

2. Thanks are .. all those who took part in the campaign for the cultivation of carnivorous plants.

3. The threatened animals and plants of Illinois are . the law. 4. The soil in this area .. mainly . clay. 5. A couple of other species of carnivorous plants are . mention.


D. a) Read the text again and identify the modal verbs used to:

1. Make a strong recommendation/ express obligation

2. Give advice ..

3. Express possibility

b). Now underline the correct modal verb:

1. If you want to apply for this job, you should/may be able to type at least 60 words a minute. (advice)

2. You shouldnt/ neednt phone him this evening unless you want to lose your job. (advice)

3. I cant / shouldnt imagine what it would be like to live in a hot climate.(impossibility)

4. I should have/ must have left London before 9, but I didnt. (regret) E. Use the words in CAPITALS to form a word that best fits the space as in the following example: E.g. These subspecies are DIFFERENTIATED by the markings on their wings. DIFFERENT 1. The accident was caused by the drivers ___________ speed on a country road. EXCESS

2. ____________ measurements include the mass of water vapour per unit volume of natural air. HUMID 3. Too much ____________ in a greenhouse can lead to the growth of molds and fungi. MOIST

4. Our company is looking for someone who is ready to become our trade ___________ in Romania.

REPRESENT

5. He was finding it ____________ difficult to make decisions about growing carnivorous plants. INCREASE


F. Work in pairs, and put the pros and cons of having a carnivorous plant in your own house while trying to convince your mother that it is the best birthday present for you. There is some useful language for you to draw on below. Here's a starter for you:

Student: Carnivorous plants are wonderful plants to have in our house because they are brightly coloured. Mother: But they are scary and I cant live under the same roof with such monsters.

Useful vocabulary: Useful language: spectacular, unique, increasingly

popular, plant lovers, to consist of, nutrients, insects, species, catch the

prey, to be lured into, humidity, vegetation, fall victims, attract, block

and digest the prey, sow, proper temperature, protected by law, shaded

areas, scary, creepy.

I was thinking it would be nice.../ It would be a nice change if .../ So what do you think? / How about..?/ What about?

Youre probably right/ Sounds perfect. / Thats a good idea.

I dont think that./ Well, I dont know./ Im not sure thats such a good choice./ Perhaps it would be better if./ No, Im afraid that wouldnt be appropriate.

Linking words and phrases: in fact, on the whole, also, besides, clearly, actually, at first sight, for example, up to a point, for all I know, while, on the other hand, even though, as it is, anyway

Contrast Explanation Example Enumeration Concession Addition on the other

hand, in fact, at first sight

for all I know, clearly, as it is,

actually

for example, for instance

in the first place, in the second place, on the

whole

up to a point, even though,

anyway, while

besides, also

G. You have been asked to write an article for a newspaper about a guest house in rural Romania where the

proprietors have decided to import a wide range of species of carnivorous plants from abroad. Work in pairs to plan and write the article, stressing the points that would make the location unique and interesting for tourists. The editor of the newspaper has allowed you a maximum of 250-300 words.

Useful vocabulary: survival, instinct, guest house, proprietors, greenhouse, spectacular, unique, plant lovers, nutrients, insects, species, prey-trapping mechanisms, pitcher trap, cracker trap, adhesive trap, vesicular trap, sweet sap, catch the prey, rain water, humidity, tendrils for climbing, vegetation, lid, fall victims, rosette, lobes, filaments along the edges, attract, block and digest the prey, sow, proper temperature, wet mixture, sticky substance, protected by law, drops of dew, shaded areas, wet land, hairs on the leaves, semi-aquatic plants.

REMEMBER!

An ARTICLE should contain: a. a suitable eye-catching headline, which is usually brief and written in the same style as the article itself (formal or informal) b. an introduction which makes the reader want to read more - Useful techniques: direct address; a rhetorical question, reference to an unusual scene/situation c. a main body of two or more paragraphs in which the topic is developed in detail d. a conclusion which gives an appropriate ending to the article (it may summarise the main points or re-state your opinion)

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Carnivorous Plants