PrepTest 148, Section 3, Question 9
There are many agricultural regions in North America(54 more words not shown)
Which one of the following,(13 more words not shown)
- APumpkins are usually(6 more words not shown)
- BPumpkins depend on(11 more words not shown)
- CMore pumpkins are(21 more words not shown)
- DProlonged cold temperatures(15 more words not shown)
- EMost of the(28 more words not shown)
Reading the argument
Why grow pumpkins where frost is more likely to ruin them? There must be some advantage we're missing.
What we’re looking for
Could growers start earlier in those regions? The passage rules that out: the long, cold winters delay the growing season. So an earlier start won't explain why production is concentrated there. For this discrepancy question, we need a benefit that can coexist with the shorter season and the risk of early frost. We don't need to show that frost is harmless. A location can have a real drawback and still offer an advantage that makes growing there sensible.
Working the answers
- A
Reaching maturity in autumn doesn't explain choosing a place where early autumn frost threatens the crop. That timing fits the setup, but it doesn't give growers a reason to prefer the riskier regions.
- B
Warm-weather pollination gives us no special advantage for places with long, cold winters. Those regions could still have warm growing weather, so B doesn't show pollination is impossible there. It simply doesn't explain what makes them attractive despite the delayed season and frost risk.
- C
Where pumpkins are sold needn't be where they are grown. Growers could ship their crops to customers elsewhere. More buyers in regions with long growing seasons therefore doesn't explain why production is concentrated in the colder regions. We need a growing advantage, not merely a sales location.
- DCorrect
The cold kills disease-causing organisms in the soil. That gives growers a benefit to set against the shorter season: their pumpkins face less danger from diseases that could kill or seriously damage them. The same winter that delays growing can improve the conditions the crop will face afterward. D explains why the frost risk needn't make those regions a poor choice overall.
- E
This explains where seeds are produced and how the seed-producing plants are protected. It doesn't explain why growers plant the resulting pumpkin crop mainly in regions with long, cold winters. Producing seeds in one place and growing the commercial crop in another are different stages. We still need a reason for the second location.
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