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עברית

Grade 8 (A2) · Fact text · 216 words

Drop by Drop

A fact text about drip irrigation, an idea developed in Israel: how it began, how it works and how it helps farmers save water.

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1In many hot and dry places, water is the most thing a farmer has. In the past, most farmers watered their fields by them or by spraying water into the air. A lot of that water never reached the plants. Some of it flowed away, and some of it disappeared into the hot air.

2In the 1960s, an Israeli engineer named Simcha Blass developed a different idea. He noticed that a tree near a pipe grew much bigger than the trees around it. This gave him a simple idea: why not give each plant small drops of water, directly at its ?

3Together with Kibbutz Hatzerim in the Negev, he helped to start a company that made thin plastic pipes with tiny holes. The pipes run along the rows of plants, and water comes out slowly, drop by drop. This method is called drip .

4Drip has several . Farmers usually need less water, because very little is lost. They can also add to the water, so the plants get food and water together. Today, farmers in many countries use this method, especially in dry areas. It is not a perfect solution — the pipes cost money and need care — but it has helped many farmers grow more food with less water.

📘 Glossary
  • valuable - worth a lot
  • flooding - covering the ground with lots of water
  • leaking - letting liquid escape through a hole
  • roots - the parts of a plant that grow under the ground
  • irrigation - giving water to crops
  • advantages - good points
  • fertilizer - a substance that helps plants grow

Questions

  1. Finding details

    1. In the past, why did a lot of water never reach the plants?

  2. Finding details

    2. What did Simcha Blass notice?

  3. Making inferences

    3. Why do you think the tree near the leaking pipe grew bigger than the other trees?

  4. Reference words

    4. In paragraph 2, "This" in "This gave him a simple idea" refers to…

  5. Finding details

    5. How does water come out of the pipes in drip irrigation?

  6. Finding details

    6. Write TWO advantages of drip irrigation.

  7. Word meaning

    7. In paragraph 4, "advantages" are…

  8. Reference words

    8. In paragraph 4, who does "They" refer to in "They can also add fertilizer"?

  9. Fact, opinion and stance

    9. What does the writer think about drip irrigation?

Answer every question to get a score (0/9)

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