iBT TOEFL Topic Vocabulary Breakthrough Unit 073

iBT TOEFL Topic Vocabulary Breakthrough Unit 073
Author: Li Xiaolai

73. Insects and diseases are a continuing menace to forests. Various insects, such as the gypsy moth, the tussock moth, and the spruce budworm, devastate extensive areas by defoliation. Other insects serve as carriers for the causative agents of diseases that destroy trees. Parasitic tree diseases may be caused by bacteria, fungi, viruses, and nematodes, or by such parasitic plants as the mistletoe or dodder. Noninfectious diseases of trees include sunscald; drought injury; root drowning, or suffocation; nutritional excesses or deficiencies; winter injury; and injury from smoke, gases, and fumes.

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