# 40 Peanuts and George Washington Carver
Peanuts are popular. There are many reasons. They are tasty. They are easy to shuck. And they don't mess up your hands. That's why they're so good at a baseball game.
Peanuts are popular all over the world. Over 20 million tons are grown per year. Here in the United States, we grow over one-and-a-half million tons. Georgia produces the most.
Have we always grown so many peanuts? The answer is no. They became popular here shortly after 1900. One man gets credit for this. He is George Washington Carver.
Why did Carver work with the peanut? For one reason, he wanted to save the soil. Cotton took too much of its strength. It took nutrients from the soil. Carver wanted to find a cotton substitute. The peanut crop was the answer. Peanuts made the soil richer. Their roots drew and fixed nitrogen into the soil.
But Carver still had a problem. Farmers had to make a living. Carver had to prove that peanuts could bring in as much cash as cotton. So he put his science skills to work. He worked day and night in his lab. The work paid off. He found over 300 products that could be made from peanuts. Out of peanuts he created such foods as cheese, milk, flour, and even coffee. He also made products such as ink, dyes, soap, and wood grains.
Carver and peanuts were saviors. Any farmer could grow peanuts. Small farmers could plant, grow, harvest, and sell them. Big farmers, too. This was a cash crop for all.
Carver's work with the peanut caused big changes in the agriculture of the South.
# 40 花生與喬治·華盛頓·卡弗
花生很受歡迎。有許多原因。它們很美味。它們容易去殼。而且不會弄髒你的手。這就是為什麼它們在棒球比賽中如此受歡迎。
花生在全世界都很受歡迎。每年種植超過2000萬噸。在美國這裡，我們種植超過150萬噸。喬治亞州產量最多。
我們一直種植這麼多花生嗎？答案是否定的。它們在1900年後不久在這裡流行起來。一個人為此贏得了讚譽。他就是喬治·華盛頓·卡弗。
為什麼卡弗要研究花生？一個原因是，他想保護土壤。棉花耗盡了土壤太多的肥力。它從土壤中吸收養分。卡弗想找一種棉花的替代品。花生作物就是答案。花生使土壤更肥沃。它們的根系吸收並固定氮到土壤中。
但卡弗還有一個問題。農民必須謀生。卡弗必須證明花生能帶來與棉花一樣多的現金收入。於是他運用他的科學技能。他在實驗室裡日夜工作。這項工作得到了回報。他發現了300多種可以用花生製成的產品。他用花生創造了奶酪、牛奶、麵粉甚至咖啡等食品。他還製造了墨水、染料、肥皂和木紋等產品。
卡弗和花生是救星。任何農民都可以種植花生。小農可以種植、培育、收穫和銷售它們。大農場主也可以。這對所有人來說都是一種經濟作物。
卡弗對花生的研究給南方的農業帶來了巨大的變化。