植物學(xué)家們?cè)诶匣墓麍@里，搜尋長(zhǎng)期消失的蘋(píng)果品種

植物學(xué)家們?cè)诶匣墓麍@里，搜尋長(zhǎng)期消失的蘋(píng)果品種

The apple tree stands alone near the top of a steep hill, wind whipping through its branches as a perfect sunset paints its leaves a vibrant gold.

那棵蘋(píng)果樹(shù)孤零零地矗立在一座陡峭的山頂上，風(fēng)從樹(shù)枝間呼嘯而過(guò)，完美的晚霞將它的葉子染成一片生機(jī)勃勃的金色。

It has been there for more than a century, and there is no hint that the tree or its apples are anything out of the ordinary. But this scraggly specimen produces the Arkansas Beauty, a so-called heritage fruit long believed to be extinct until amateur botanists in the Pacific Northwest tracked it down three years ago.

它在那里已經(jīng)有一個(gè)多世紀(jì)了，沒(méi)有任何跡象表明這棵樹(shù)或它的蘋(píng)果與眾不同。但是這個(gè)雜亂的標(biāo)本卻產(chǎn)生了阿肯色州的美麗，一種所謂的傳統(tǒng)水果，一直被認(rèn)為已經(jīng)滅絕了，直到三年前太平洋西北部的業(yè)余植物學(xué)家才發(fā)現(xiàn)它。

It’s one of 13 long-lost apple varieties rediscovered by a pair of retirees in the remote canyons, wind-swept fields and hidden ravines of what was once the Oregon Territory.

這是一對(duì)退休老人在遙遠(yuǎn)的峽谷、狂風(fēng)掃過(guò)的田地和隱蔽的峽谷中重新發(fā)現(xiàn)的13個(gè)消失已久的蘋(píng)果品種之一。

E.J. Brandt and David Benscoter, who together form the nonprofit Lost Apple Project, log countless hours and hundreds of miles in trucks, on all-terrain vehicles and on foot to find orchards planted by settlers as they pushed west more than a century ago.

e·j·勃蘭特(E.J. Brandt)和戴維·本斯考特(David Benscoter)共同創(chuàng)立了非營(yíng)利組織“消失的蘋(píng)果項(xiàng)目”(Lost Apple Project)，他們開(kāi)著卡車(chē)、越野車(chē)、步行數(shù)小時(shí)數(shù)百英里，尋找一個(gè)多世紀(jì)前定居者向西開(kāi)拓時(shí)種植的果園。

The two are racing against time to preserve a slice of homesteader history: The apple trees are old, and many are dying. Others are being ripped out for more wheat fields or housing developments for a growing population.

這兩棵樹(shù)在爭(zhēng)分奪秒地保護(hù)家園的歷史:蘋(píng)果樹(shù)老了，很多都快死了。其他的則被用于更多的麥田或?yàn)椴粩嘣鲩L(zhǎng)的人口開(kāi)發(fā)住房。

“To me, this area is a goldmine,” said Brandt, who has found two lost varieties in the Idaho panhandle. “I don’t want it lost in time. I want to give back to the people so that they can enjoy what our forefathers did.”

“對(duì)我來(lái)說(shuō)，這個(gè)地區(qū)是個(gè)金礦，”勃蘭特說(shuō)，他在愛(ài)達(dá)荷州的狹長(zhǎng)地帶發(fā)現(xiàn)了兩個(gè)丟失的品種。“我不想讓它在時(shí)間里消失。我要回報(bào)人民，使他們能夠享受我們的祖先所做的一切。”

Brandt and Benscoter scour old county fair records, newspaper clippings and nursery sales ledgers to figure out which varieties existed in the area. Then they hunt them down, matching written records with old property maps, land deeds and sometimes the memories of the pioneers’ great-grandchildren. They also get leads from people who live near old orchards.

勃蘭特和本斯考特仔細(xì)查閱了老郡集市的記錄、剪報(bào)和苗圃的銷(xiāo)售分類(lèi)賬，以找出該地區(qū)存在的品種。然后，他們會(huì)將書(shū)面記錄與舊的地圖冊(cè)、地契、有時(shí)還有先驅(qū)者的曾孫們的記憶匹配起來(lái)，進(jìn)行搜尋。他們也從住在老果園附近的人那里得到線(xiàn)索。