2005年高考英语全国卷 - 阅读理解E

“Soon, you’re going to have to move out!” cried my neighbor upon seeing the largest tomato plant known to mankind, or at least known in my neighborhood．
“很快，你就得搬出去了！”我的邻居看到了人类已知，至少是她已知的最大的西红柿植株，大声喊道。

One tiny 9-inch plant, bought for ＄1.25 in the spring, has already taken over much of my rose bed, covering much of other plants, and is well on its way to the front door．
春天花1.25美元买来的一株9英寸的小植物，已经占据了我的玫瑰花床的大部分，覆盖了许多其他植物，并且正在向前门生长。

Roses require a good deal of care, and if it weren’t for the pleasure they give, it wouldn’t be worth the work．As it is, I have a garden full of sweet-smelling roses for most of the year．Bushes must be pruned in early spring, leaving ugly woody branches until the new growth appears a few weeks later．It was the space available in the garden that led me into planting just one little tomato plant．A big mistake．
玫瑰需要精心呵护，如果不是因为它们给人带来快乐，那么就一点不值得了，我的花园一年中大部分时间满是芳香的玫瑰。灌木必须在早春修剪，我留下丑陋的枝条，直到几周后长出新的。我用花园里的剩余空间种了一株小番茄，这是一个大错误。

Soil conditions made just perfect for roses turn out to be even more perfect for tomatoes．The daily watering coupled with full sun and regular fertilizing have turned the little plant into a tall bush．The cage I placed around it as the plant grew has long since disappeared under the thick leaves．
适合种植玫瑰的土壤条件更适合种植西红柿。每天浇水，充足的阳光，定期施肥，这棵小苗长成了一棵高大的灌木。小苗生长时候我在它四周放的笼子，早已隐藏在厚厚的叶子下了。

Now the task I face in harvesting the fruit is twofold; First, I have to find the red ones among the leaves, which means I almost have to stand on my head, and once found I have to reach down and under, pick the tomatoes and withdraw my full fist without dropping the prize so dearly won．I found two full-blown white roses completely hidden as I picked tomatoes in June．But they were weak and the leaves already yellow for lack of light．
现在，我在收获水果时面临的任务是双份的：首先，我必须在叶子中找到红色，这意味着我必须得低下头，一旦发现，我必须把手伸到下面，摘下西红柿，然后收回，以免战利品，掉在地上损失惨重。我在6月份采摘西红柿时，发现两朵盛开的白玫瑰被完全挡住了，很虚弱，而且由于光线不足，叶子已经变黄了。

Here I am faced with a painful small decision：to tear up a wonderful and productive tomato plant that offers up between ten and twenty ripe sweet tomatoes each day or say goodbye to several expensive and treasured roses．Like Scarlett in Gone With the Wind, I’ll think about that tomorrow．
在这里，我面临着一个痛苦的小决定：扯掉一株美妙而多产的西红柿，它每天提供10到20个成熟的甜西红柿，或者放弃几朵昂贵而珍贵的玫瑰。就像《乱世佳人》中的斯佳丽一样，我准备明天考虑这个问题。