General Listening Quiz

Listen to the recording on gardening and read along with the conversation. Review the key vocabulary and the sample sentences.

Susan: Hi. Welcome back to Susan’s Gardening Show. I’m Susan, and we’re ready to take our next caller. We have Mark from Seattle. Are you still there, Mark?

Mark: Uh. Yeah, but maybe not for long.

Susan: So, how can we help you today?

Mark: Okay. Uh, my wife is really into gardening, and about five years ago, she received a beautiful climbing rose bush . . . I think an Agatha Christie [That’s a nice one.] from her mother who has passed away. And anyway, the rose plant seems to be on its last leg.

Susan: Really? Normally, that rose is really quite hardy, and [I know.] it’s very disease-resistant, too. [I know.] So, what’s the problem?

Mark: Well, this situation ISN’T normal. You see, about a week ago, I was doing some yard work, and I was using some weed killer [UH-oh.], yeah, to try to get rid of some terrible weeds and . . .

Susan: Did you spray the roses?

Mark: Well, not e-,not exactly. I set the spray container down near the roses while I was trimming a bush, and the container must have gotten knocked over, and the weed killer soaked into the ground near the roses.

Susan: How much weed killer are you talking about?

Mark: Uh, about six or seven quarts (about six liters or 1.6 gallons), I think. [Oh, that’s a lot.] You know, I . . . I mean [That’s a lot.] when you put . . . Yeah . . 

Susan: How are the roses? What do they look like now?

Mark: Oh, Dead, real dead. Dead as a doornail dead, but my wife hasn’t seen them yet.

Susan: Really? What have you done? Blindfolded her?

Mark: Well, I’ve kept her away from that side of the house where the roses are, [but] she is bound to see them at some point.

Susan: Yeah, yeah. You’ve got a problem.

Mark: I mean, is there anything I can do to revive ’em [them]?

Susan: Not unless you’re a magician.

Mark: Well, can you recommend a quick-growing variety that can take its place?

Susan: Mark. I’m sorry. You’ve made a mistake . . . A big mistake.

Mark: . . . except that my wife warned me this could happen . . . Oh, man.

Susan: Listen. You made a blunder. A big mistake. A really big mistake, but unless your wife goes on vacation for a couple of years, you’re not gonna [going to] be able to replace the roses that fast.

Mark: So, any recommendation? I mean, what do I do?

Susan: You need to talk to her.

Mark: Are you kidding? You . . . you don’t know my wife.

Susan: I’m sorry. Look. You’ve waited long enough. Don’t let the grass grow around your feet. Say something, but be sure to hide the garden shears before you do. Kneel down; ask her for forgiveness now.

Mark: But that’s what I did when I killed her prized apple tree last year.

Susan: No way. Really?

Mark: Oh, man. Oh! She’s coming in from outside [Oh, no, oh no.].

Susan: One final word: Hide the weed killer. [But . . .] Thanks, Mark. That’s all the time we have for now. Let’s move on to our next caller.

• be into something (idiom): be interested in something 
  – I was really into running for awhile until I injured my knee.
• be on one’s last leg (idiom): be ready to die or give out because of lack of energy 
  – My truck is on its last leg, so I need to start looking for a new one.
• hardy (adjective): strong or sturdy 
  – You need to plant hardy varieties of bushes in this area because of the harsh winter weather.
• get rid of (idiom): throw away or discard 
  – You should get rid of these plants; they are growing out of control.
• be/looks dead as a doornail (idiom): undoubtedly dead 
  – Unfortunately, our pet chicken in the garden looks as dead as a doornail. It must have died during the snowstorm last night.
• be bound to (verb): be likely to happen 
  – Seeing that you have taken so good care of your garden, you are bound to have a great harvest this summer and fall.
• revive (verb): bring back to life or make something more alive 
  – I think it is too late. No matter how much you water that plant, you won’t be able to revive it.
• blunder (noun; also a verb): a careless or embarrassing mistake 
  – It was a real blunder not to have watered the garden more frequently. Now, none of the plants will survive.
• let the grass grow around your feet (idiom): wait, waste time, or delay doing something 
  – When it comes to doing well in school, you should never let the grass grow around your feet. Get busy and study every day.
• shears (noun): a gardening tool that looks like a large pair of scissors for cutting and trimming bushes and plants 
  – Does anyone know where the shears are? I need them to trim the bushes in the front yard.