Page 324 - G5.1_M1-5

myNotes
Pollution Solutions

30 Vegetables may be full of vitamins and
other health-giving goodies, but are
city-grown veggies safe? What about all
those cars coughing on your lettuce?
31 Most airborne pollutants will come off
your veggies with a good washing. The
more dangerous kinds are lurking
underground. Chemicals from nearby
industrial sites can turn the earth toxic.
One of the most common—and
dangerous—contaminants is lead. It can
leach into the soil from paint and lead
plumbing pipes, among other things.

32 Gardeners who have reason to believe
their soil isn’t safe can send a soil sample

to a lab for testing. Private companies,
many city health departments, and some
universities also offer this service.
33 If the soil is contaminated, it can often
be fixed using lime and organic matter. To
be extra safe, concerned gardeners can You don’t have to start big. You can expand your
garden each season, one bed or pot at a time.
stick with fruiting crops, such as peppers.
That’s because the edible part grows
above the soil and the parts below the soil
don’t absorb a lot of chemicals. Or, they
can grow plants in containers or raised

beds with fresh soil instead.
IS IT A FRUIT OR A
34 Testing can reveal other things about VEGETABLE? A botanist—
soil, such as the nutrients it contains, someone who studies plants—
which will influence the type of plants you would say that if it’s fleshy, has
can grow. If it turns out the soil is safe but seeds, and comes from a
of poor quality, you may be able to flowering plant, it’s a fruit. If,
however, you eat the root, leaves,
improve it by adding compost. or stem, it’s a vegetable. So, an
eggplant is a fruit and so is a

influence If you influence something, you affect walnut, but carrots, celery,
it or cause a certain outcome. and potatoes are veggies.

324