The Return of the Huarango Reading Answers

Feb 1, 2023

The Return of the Huarango Reading Answers includes a passage and following questions. The IELTS Reading section tests the understanding ability and summarizing capability of the candidates. The Return of the Huarango Reading Answers has 13 questions. This IELTS reading topic has been taken from the book: Cambridge IELTS 3 Student's Book with Answers. This topic: The Return of the Huarango Reading Answers comprises of two question types: fill in the blanks, no more than two words and True False, Not Given. Candidates can improve their reading skills by practicing more topics like The Return of the Huarango Reading Answers. IELTS reading practice papers is the most recommended preparation method.

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Section 1

Read the passage to answer the following questions

The Return of the Huarango Reading Answers

The arid valleys of southern Peru are welcoming the return of a native plant.

The Peruvian south coast is a 2,000-kilometer-long strip of desert trapped between the Andes and the Pacific Ocean. It is also one of the most endangered ecosystems on the planet. Because it seldom rains there, the only year-round water source is buried tens of metres under the surface. This is why the huarango tree is so well adapted to living there: it has the longest roots of any tree on the planet. By stretching down 50–80 metres, they suck up water for the tree while simultaneously bringing it up into the upper subsoil, providing a water supply for other plant life.
Dr. David Beresford-Jones, an archaeobotanist at Cambridge University, investigated the role of the huarango tree in landscape change in southern Peru's Lower Ica Valley. He regarded the huarango as an important element of the ancient people's diet because it could reach underground water sources, enabling inhabitants to endure years of drought when their crops failed to thrive. Crops, on the other hand, gradually supplanted Huarango trees over time. When natural forest is chopped down, erosion occurs because there is nothing to hold the soil in place. As a consequence, when the huarangos go, the area becomes desolate. Nothing is growing in the Lower Ica Valley right now.
For ages, the huarango tree has also been vital to the dwellers of the surrounding Middle Ica Valley. They ate items made from their seed pods and grew crops underneath them. Its branches were used to generate charcoal for cooking and heating, while its leaves and bark were utilised to manufacture herbal remedies and its trunk was used to build houses. It is, however, rapidly declining. The great bulk of the valley's huarango woods have already been cleared for fuel and agriculture – first smallholdings, but now enormous farms producing foodstuffs for the worldwide market.
"99 percent of the trees that were here 1,000 years ago have already perished," says botanist Oliver Whaley of London's Kew Gardens, who is conducting a pioneering initiative to protect and restore the fast decreasing ecosystem alongside ethnobotanist Dr. William Milliken. To be successful, Whaley must win the favour of the villagers, which has forced him to overcome local preconceptions. "Increasingly ambitious communities feel that growing food trees in your yard or on your street implies that you are poor and must continue to cultivate your food," he adds. Whaley is encouraging locals to rekindle their love of harangues in order to avoid the Middle Ica Valley from following in the footsteps of the Lower Ica Valley. "It's a process of cultural resuscitation," he says. He has already organised a huapango festival to restore people's pride in their natural past, and he has assisted local schoolchildren in planting thousands of trees.
"You should cultivate trees," Whaley continues, "which will assist them all in attempting to get consumers involved in reforestation activities." As a consequence, he has been engaging with people to attempt to transform huarango byproducts into food in order to offer a sustainable life. When you simmer the beans, you obtain a rich, dark sauce that tastes like molasses. It's also delicious in drinks, soups, and stews. ” The seeds and shells may be mixed to produce a rich, chocolaty "coffee," and the seeds can be crushed into flour for pastries. "It's rich with vitamins and minerals," is what Whaley has to say about it, and he's right.
Some farmers are planting huarangos. Alberto Benevides, owner of Ica Valley's first organically cultivated ranch, which Whaley helped build, has been planting the evergreen for 13 years. He produces maple syrup and flour, which he sells at Lima's organic farmers' market. His acreage is modest and does not now provide him with enough revenue to live on, but he anticipates that it will improve in the future. "The fresh vegetable business in Peru is rapidly developing," says Benevides. I'm investing for the future.
Although Whaley may convince the people to rekindle their bond with the huarango, the large farms are a significant danger. A couple of them slice through trees, breaking up the paths that allow animals, birds, and pollen to travel freely over the narrow wooded strip. He's persuading landowners to just allow him to construct forest zones on their property in the hopes of reversing this tendency. He believes that the additional forest will benefit agriculture by decreasing evaporation, providing a habitat for insects that manage pests, and reducing the demand for water.
'If we can record biodiversity and understand how everything works, we'll be ready to go ahead.' "Desert landscapes may be reduced to nearly nothing," adds Whaley. "It's not like a jungle, where a lot of space is required." Life has always been restricted to tunnels and islands in this location. If just a few trees remain, the colony may quickly develop since it is used to taking advantage of water when it comes. He believes that his method might be used as a model in other arid areas throughout the globe. If you can do it here, in the world's most unstable system, it's a true message of hope for other nations, particularly in Africa, where people are suffering from starvation and can't afford to leave for the rain.’

Section 2

Solution and Explanation

Questions 1–5

Complete the notes below.

Choose ONE WORD ONLY from the passage for each answer.

Write your answers in boxes 1–5 on your answer sheet.

The importance of the huarango tree

– Its roots may stretch up to 80 meters into the ground.

………….. can be penetrated deeply under the earth.

Answer: water
Supporting Sentence: They stretch down 50–80 meters and, as well as sucking up water for the tree, they bring it into the higher subsoil, creating a water source for other plant life.
Keyword : higher subsoil
Keyword Location: Line 6 to 8 in Paragraph 1
Explanation: The supporting sentence gives us the answer to the question. It states that the Huarango tree (they) is capable of sucking up (access) water by stretching down 50-80 meters (deep below the soil). Hence, water is the correct answer.

A good while ago, it was a critical component of the people' 2.....................

Answer: diet
Supporting Sentence: He believes the huarango was key to the ancient people’s diet and, because it could reach deep water sources, it allowed local people to withstand years of drought when their other crops failed.
Keyword : diet, key
Keyword Location: Line 3 in Paragraph 2
Explanation: The author suggests that the Huarango tree must have been a crucial (key) part of the diet for the ancient (a long time ago) people (local inhabitants). This is because its deep roots helped the tree to survive drought by collecting groundwater efficiently. Hence, diet is the correct answer.

Helped people to survive periods of 3…………………..

Answer: drought
Supporting Sentence: He believes the huarango was key to the ancient people’s diet and, because it could reach deep water sources, it allowed local people to withstand years of drought when their other crops failed
Keyword : withstand, years of drought
Keyword Location: Line 3 to 7 in Paragraph 2
Explanation: The passage states that the Huarango tree must have helped the ancient people. It is because their deep roots helped the tree to collect ground water efficiently and survive (withstand) periods (years) of drought. Hence, drought is the correct answer.

Prevents 4………………… of the soil

Answer: erosion
Supporting Sentence: Cutting down native woodland leads to erosion, as there is nothing to keep the soil in place.
Keyword : erosion, soil
Keyword Location: Line 6 to 8 in Paragraph 2
Explanation: These lines means that replacing the Huarango tree caused soil erosion as the crop fields that were used as a replacement couldn’t hold the soil. Hence, as per the passage, the answer is ‘erosion’. The author mentions that Huarango trees used to keep the soil in place (prevented erosion).

Guarantees that land will not become a 5.....................

Answer: desert
Supporting Sentence: So when the huarangos go, the land turns into a desert.
Keyword : land turns,
Keyword Location: Line 8 to 9 in Paragraph 2
Explanation: This shows that extirpating Huarango trees causes the land to turn into a desert. It proves that these trees prevented the land from becoming a desert.

Questions 6-8

Complete the table below.

Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the passage for each answer.

Write your answers in boxes 6-8 on your answer sheet.

Traditional uses of the huarango tree
A section of the tree	Traditional use
6………………..	Fuel
7………………. and ……………….	Medicine
8………………	construction

Question 6

Answer: huarango branches
Supporting Sentence: Its leaves and bark were used for herbal remedies, while its branches were used for charcoal for cooking and heating, and its trunk was used to build houses.
Keyword : cooking, heating
Keyword Location: Line 3 to 5 in Paragraph 3
Explanation: The supporting sentence means that the branches of the Huarango trees were used as fuel (charcoal for cooking and heating). As per the author, leaves abd branches are used as fuel for cooking. Hence, huarango branches is the correct answer.

Question 7

Answer: bark, leaves
Supporting Sentence: Its leaves and bark were used for herbal remedies, while its branches were used for charcoal for cooking and heating, and its trunk was used to build houses.
Keyword : leaves and bark, herbal remedies
Keyword Location: Line 3 to 5 in Paragraph 3
Explanation: From this sentence, it is suggested that the bark and leaves of the Huarango trees were used as herbal remedies (medicines). Hence, bark and leaves are the correct answer.

Question 8

Answer: huarango trunk
Supporting Sentence :Its leaves and bark were used for herbal remedies, while its branches were used for charcoal for cooking and heating, and its trunk was used to build houses.
Keyword : trunk, build
Keyword Location: Line 3 to 5 in Paragraph 3
Explanation: The author states that the trunk of the Huarango trees was used to build houses (construction). Hence, huarango trunk is the correct answer.

Questions 9-13

Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage 1?

In boxes 9-13 on your answer sheet, write

TRUE if the statement agrees with the information
FALSE if the statement contradicts the information
NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this

Whaley has discovered some of the traditional applications of huarango products from local households.

Answer: Not Given
Explanation: There is no information in the passage regarding this. Hence, the correct answer is Not Given.

Alberto Benevides, a farmer, is now generating a great income from huarangos.

Answer: False
Supporting Sentence: His farm is relatively small and doesn’t yet provide him with enough to live on, but he hopes this will change.
Keyword : provide, enough
Keyword Location: Line 1 to 6 in Paragraph 6
Explanation: The author states that Alberto Benevides has been has been planting the tree for 13 years. Still his farm is small and does not provide enough to live on. Hence, the answer is False.

Farmers' assistance is needed by Whaley to help maintain the area's biodiversity.

Answer: True
Supporting Sentence: In the hope of counteracting this, he’s persuading farmers to let him plant forest corridors on their land.
Keyword : cut across the forests,hope of counteracting
Keyword Location: Line 1 to 6 in Paragraph 7
Explanation: As per the author there is still the threat of the larger farms. Some of these cut across the forests and break up the corridors that allow the essential movement of mammals, birds, and pollen up and down the narrow forest strip. To counter this or to protect the environment, Wiley needs the help of local farmers.

To be successful, Whaley's idea must be scaled up to a massive scale.

Answer: False
Supporting Sentence: If you just have a few trees left, the population can grow up quickly because it’s used to exploiting water when it arrives.’
Keyword : few trees
Keyword Location: Line 3 to 6 in Paragraph 8
Explanation: The supporting sentence means that Walley doesn’t need a huge area like a rainforest in order to make his project successful. Instead, he states that a small patch of land (confined corridors and islands) would serve the purpose. Hence, the statement is False.