世界奇特植物大觀

Welwitschia1 plant consists of only two leaves and a sturdy2 stem3 with roots. That’s all! Two leaves continue to grow until they resemble the shaggy4 mane5 of some sci-fialien. The stem thickens， rather than gains in height， and can grow to be almost 2 meters high and 8 meters wide. Their estimated lifespan is 400 to 1，500 years. It can survive up to five years with no rain. The plant is said to be very tasty either raw or baked in hot ashes， and this is how it got its other name， Onyanga， which means onion of the desert.

Its common name is Dancing Grass or Telegraph Plant or Semaphore6 Plant—after the leaf movements， which resemble semaphore signals. This plant is easy to grow， dancing happily on a sunny windowsill.

There is one exotic7 and rare plant you wouldn’t likely want to grow anywhere near your landscape no matter how famous it would make you for doing so. That would be growing the largest flower in the world. This speckled8， though not particularly pretty， rust colored flower is called Rafflesia Arnoldii.

It gets to be 3 feet across and weighing a whopping9 15～24 pounds. It gives off a most offensive odor10 when in bloom. This odor is somewhat like rotting meat. This is why it is often called the Corpse Plant by some natives of Indonesia where it originates. Its blossoms only last three days to a week. This hideous11 smell it produces attracts pollinating12 insects to it to help perpetuate13 the species. But even when this happens， only 10～20 percent of the tiny seedlings make it. With any luck in nine months it blooms.

Dracaena Cinnabari is native to the Socotra14 archipelago15. It is also referred to as Socotra Dragon Tree. It is one of the most striking of Socotra’s plants， a strange-looking， umbrella-shaped tree. It is said that its red sap16 was the dragon’s blood of the ancients， sought after as a medicine and a dye17.

The Selaginella Lepidophylla is native to the Chihuahuan Desert18. Also known as Rose of Jericho19， it is a species of desert plant noted for its ability to survive almost complete desiccation20. During dry weather， its stems curl into a tight ball and uncurl when exposed to moisture21.

千歲蘭的植株僅由兩片葉子和粗壯的根莖組成。而這就是一整棵植物！它的兩片葉子不斷生長，直到長成形似科幻作品里某種外星生物的粗濃鬃毛。它的莖長粗的速度遠遠大于長高的速度，最后能長到大概2米高，8米寬。它們的壽命預計可達到400～1500年，并能夠在沒有雨水的情況下存活5年。據說這種植物不管是生吃還是經過熱灰的烘烤都十分美味。也正因為如此，它得到了另一美稱——“奧尼洋葛”，也就是沙漠洋蔥的意思。

它的俗名叫做“跳舞草”、“電報草”或者“旗語草”，之所以有這些名稱是因為其葉子擺動的時候像是在打旗語信號。跳舞草極易存活，在陽光明媚的窗臺上，它就可以翩翩起舞。

有一種奇異而稀有的植物，如果你把它種在你的園子附近的任何地方，就會讓你非常出名，因為那樣一來，你可就種出了世界上最大的花朵。但不管怎么出名，你都不可能會這么做。這種長滿斑點且不太好看的鐵銹色花朵被稱為“阿諾爾特大花”。

它的花朵能夠開到直徑3英尺，并且重達驚人的15～24磅。開花時，它會散發出一種異常刺鼻的味道。這種氣味就像是腐肉的味道。這就是為什么在它的原產地印度尼西亞，當地土著人會稱它為“尸花”的緣故。

它的花期只能持續三天到一周。它所釋放的這種難聞的氣味能幫助它吸引昆蟲，幫助其授粉，延續種群。但即使它成功吸引昆蟲，也只有10%～20%的小種子能夠生根發芽。運氣好的話，九個月之后它就會開花。

龍血樹原產于索科特拉島群島，它又被稱為索科特拉龍之樹。它擁有奇怪的外貌和傘狀的樹冠，是索科特拉島群島最惹人注目的植物之一。據說它紅色的樹脂曾是遠古時龍的血液，被人們當作草藥和染料使用。

卷柏的原產地在奇瓦瓦沙漠。卷柏也被稱作“耶利哥的玫瑰”，它是一種沙漠植物，由于其能在幾乎被完全曬干的情況下“復活”而聞名于世。當干旱季節來臨時，它的莖會緊緊卷縮成一個球;而一旦有了水分，它就會舒展莖葉，重新“復活”。

注釋

1. welwitschia n. 【植】千歲蘭。

2. sturdy adj. 強壯的；結實的；堅固的；茁壯的 3. stem n. 干；莖；(花朵、葉片、果實等的)梗

4. shaggy adj. (毛發等)粗濃的

5. mane n. (馬)鬃；(獅)鬣

6. semaphore n. 旗語

7. exotic adj. 奇異的，異乎尋常的

8. speckled adj. 有斑點的；布滿斑點的，如斑點般散布的

9. whopping adj. <口>巨大的，龐大的

10. odor n. 氣味；香味；臭味

11. hideous adj. 可怕的

12. pollinate vt. 【植】給……傳授花粉

13. perpetuate vt. 使永久；使長存；保持

14. Socotra n. 索科特拉島[也門]

15. archipelago n. 群島，列島

16. sap n. 【生】液，汁

17. dye n. 染料；染液

18. Chihuahuan Desert: 奇瓦瓦沙漠。

19. Jericho n. 耶利哥

20. desiccation n. 干燥；枯竭

21. moisture n. 水分；降雨量