There are 225 hectares of coffee plantations in Pingtung County — the most of any county in Taiwan. It is now coffee harvest season in the county. However, while harvesting this year’s crop, Pingtung County’s coffee farmers discovered an infestation of the coffee borer beetle, which has already ravaged coffee crops in central and northern Taiwan. The pest has significantly depleted this year’s coffee harvest — by 30 percent, according to data published by Pingtung County Government Department of Agriculture. The department has called in experts to help investigate and assist farmers with preventative measures to suppress the beetle’s spread.
Pingtung’s coffee farms are mostly located along the Dawu mountain range, but in recent years farmers have begun to grow coffee in flatland areas. According to local coffee farmers, this is the first time that their coffee plantations have suffered from blight, so they lack knowledge in how to deal with it. As the amount of land set aside for growing coffee in Pingtung has increased, farmers say cultivation management and blight problems have come to the fore.
The coffee borer beetle is tiny and burrows into the coffee fruit to extract food and lay eggs. The beetles also reproduce rapidly: a single beetle typically lays between 30 to 60 eggs inside the fruit. Damaged fruit withers and dries out, while bacteria within the cavity left by the beetle may produce fungus growth, leading to a higher “bean float rate” when wet processing the beans after harvest.
Photo: Chiu Chih-jou, Liberty Times 照片:自由時報邱芷柔
Removing “floating beans” is the first step during processing coffee beans. Farmers place the freshly harvested beans into large containers of water. Ripe beans are heavier, so they will sink to the bottom, while lighter unripe or inferior beans float on the surface.
Pingtung County Government Department of Agriculture says it is using traps to prevent the beetle from spreading further, and officials stress that the best time to carry out prevention measures is when the coffee plants are flowering. The department says that, in addition to working with experts from the local agricultural research and extension station, it is also providing coffee farmers with education on steps they can take to inhibit the coffee borer beetle’s spread.(Translated by Edward Jones, Taipei Times)
屏東縣咖啡種植面積達兩百二十五公頃,居全國之冠。正值咖啡採收季節,屏東咖啡農卻發現,原本肆虐中、北部咖啡產區的「咖啡果小蠹」大舉入侵屏東,造成產量大減。屏東縣政府農業處統計,今年整體產量約減少百分之三十,將邀專家會勘,協助農民進行防治作業,避免疫情蔓延。
Photo: Chiu Chih-jou, Liberty Times 照片:自由時報邱芷柔
屏東咖啡農戶指出,大武山沿線都有咖啡園,近年許多平地也加入種植行列,過去沒有病蟲害問題,因此農友相關防治知識不足。隨著種植面積及不斷增加,栽培管理及病蟲害問題也浮出檯面。
咖啡果小蠹蟲體細小,會鑽入果實取食、產卵,且繁殖速度快,一隻雌蟲在一粒果實內就可產下三十至六十粒卵,受到危害的咖啡果實會整顆枯乾,果實遭蛀洞後,增加細菌、真菌入侵機會,讓「浮豆率」跟著提高。
「去除浮豆」是咖啡製程的第一個步驟,農民將採收的咖啡果倒入大水槽,成熟飽滿的果實會沉入水底,發育不完全的劣質豆會浮上水面。
縣府農業處表示,目前多以「咖啡果小蠹誘殺器」進行防治,每年咖啡開花期是防治咖啡果小蠹最好的時機,縣府將會同農改場等專家共同勘察,並透過講習,協助降低害蟲數量減緩蔓延速度。
(自由時報邱芷柔)
A: Yet another shopping mall has just opened in Taipei. B: Do you mean the Mitsui Shopping Park LaLaport Nangang? A: Yeah, the shopping mall run by Japanese Mitsui & Co. opened last week. B: I hear the mall features about 300 stores, Vieshow Cinemas and Japanese Lopia supermarket. A: With the opening, a war is breaking out between Taipei’s department stores. A: 台北又有新的購物商場可逛啦。 B: 你是說Mitsui Shopping Park LaLaport 南港? A: 對啊這家日本三井集團旗下的商場上週開幕。 B: 聽說商場有威秀影城、樂比亞日系超市,還有多達300家專櫃。 A: 新商場一開幕,看來又要掀起一場百貨大戰啦! (By Eddy Chang, Taipei Times/台北時報張迪)
A: Hey, didn’t you go to the opening of the Mitsui Shopping Park LaLaport Nangang last week? B: Yeah, there are about 300 shops, including the first overseas branch of Japan’s Mahou Dokoro — a famous Harry Potter-themed store. A: Wow, I’ve always wanted to get a magic wand. B: There are also a bunch of great restaurants, such as Smart Fish hotpot restaurant. A: I wish I had Harry Potter’s “apparition” and “disapparition” magic, so I could teleport to the mall right now. A: 你上週不是有去LaLaport南港的盛大開幕嗎?有什麼特別的? B: 那裡有多達300家專櫃,包括魔法之地的海外首店——它可是日本知名的《哈利波特》專賣店。 A: 哇我一直想買根魔杖。 B: 另外還有各式各樣的美食,像是林聰明沙鍋魚頭。 A: 真希望我也有哈利波特的「現影術/消影術」魔法,能瞬間移動到商場去! (By Eddy Chang, Taipei Times/台北時報張迪)
When it comes to movies, some people delight in watching spine-chilling horror films. Surprisingly, apart from containing a few scares, horror movies may also offer an unexpected __1__. According to a study, watching 90 minutes of a scary movie can burn an average of 113 calories, which is roughly __2__ to taking a 30-minute walk. Researchers from the University of Westminster carried out an experiment in which they __3__ participants’ oxygen intake, carbon dioxide output, and heart rates while they were watching horror movies without any distractions. The results revealed that physiological responses to fear play a crucial role
Dos & Don’ts — 想想看,這句話英語該怎麼說? 1. 你覺得這部電影怎樣? ˇ What do you think of the movie? χ How do you like the movie? χ How do you think of the movie? 註︰What do you think of = What is your opinion of。 think 的受詞是 what,不能用 how。 2. 你認為哪一個歌星唱得最好? ˇ Which singer do you think is the best? χ Do you think which singer is the best? 註︰英語中 which singer 似乎是 do you think 的受詞,實則 do you think 是插入語,其他例子如下: 你以為他喜歡誰? Who do you think he likes? 你以為我住在哪裏? Where do you think I live? 你想我昨天在公園裏碰到了誰? Whom/Who do you think I met in the park yesterday? 3. 他不論到什麼地方,總是帶著一把雨傘。 ˇ No matter where he goes, he