Using the land

1. Ground and soil (đất trồng):
When we walk, our feet are on the ground (= the surface of the earth).
For the top part of the ground where grass and flowers grow, we use the word soil.
_ There were no seats in the park, so we had to sit on the ground.
_ The ground is very hard because it hasn't rained for weeks.
_ Plants don't grow very well here because the soil is too dry.

2. Above the ground.
grass (n)
soil (n)
plants (thực vật)
tree
leaves (n)
branches (n)
roots (n)

Some land is used for parks and gardens where we often grow trees and plants.
(= living things with roots and leaves, smaller than trees which grow in the soil)
First, you plant the tree or plant, then you must water it. (= give it water).

Land in the country is often used for agriculture (nông nghiệp)/farming (nuôi trồng, trang trại).
Some farms concentrate on dairy (san pham sua) produce such as milk, butter and cheese.
Other farms keep animals whichs are slaughtered (v-giet thit) (= killed) and sold for their meat, e.g. cows and lambs.
Sime farms use the land to grow fruit, e.g. apples and pears; vegetables, e.g. potatoes and carrots; and cereals (ngũ cốc), e.g. wheat (lúa mì), maize (ngô) and barley (lúa mạch).

When they are ready, farmers pick the fruit and harvest (v-thu hoach, gat) the other crops.
This period is called the harvest. we use the word crops as a general word to describe all the things that are grown to be eaten.

In parts of Africa the crops failed because of the drought (n-su kho han) (=long period without rain).
We had a wonderful crop of barley last year.

3. Below the ground:
One of the main activities below the ground is mining. This is the process of extracting (=removing or taking out) different materials, e.g. coal, diamond or gold, from below the ground. we call the place a mine, e.g. a coal mine, diamond mine or gold mine.

These are some of the metals we take out of the ground:
gold: a valuable yellow metals we take out of the ground.
silver: a valuable whitish metal used to make coins and jewellery.
iron: usually takes the form of a hard dark-grey metal, and is used in building and to make tools. It is also used to make steel.
tin (thiết): a softer metal often used to cover other metals.
copper: a soft reddish metal: it  permits heat and electricity to pass throught it easily.
diamond: a valuable meterial.

Some examples:
a tin beer can (lon bia)
a knife with a iron blade
a gold ring
a silver spoon.

Answer these questions about your own country:
Which of these are the most important to your economy; agriculture, mining or fishing?
Are any precious (adj- qua gia, quy) (= valuable e.g. gold or silver) metals found in your country?
What are some of the main crops grown in your country?