我家的阳台不大，只有很小的一块地方。
Wǒ jiā de yángtái bú dà, zhǐyǒu hěn xiǎo de yí kuài dìfang.
Our balcony is not big, just a tiny patch of space.
去年春天，我在上面种了西红柿和黄瓜。
Qùnián chūntiān, wǒ zài shàngmiàn zhǒng le xīhóngshì hé huángguā.
Last spring I planted tomatoes and cucumbers there.
朋友笑我，说阳台上也能种菜？
Péngyou xiào wǒ, shuō yángtái shàng yě néng zhòng cài?
My friends laughed at me, asking if a balcony could really grow vegetables.
我说，试试看吧。
Wǒ shuō, shì shì kàn ba.
I said, let me give it a try.
我把种子种进土里，天天去看。
Wǒ bǎ zhǒngzi zhòng jìn tǔ lǐ, tiān tiān qù kàn.
I planted the seeds in the soil and went to look every day.
我还用小本子记下它们的变化。
Wǒ hái yòng xiǎo běnzi jì xià tāmen de biànhuà.
I even used a little notebook to record how they changed.
土一干，我就给它们浇水。
Tǔ yī gān, wǒ jiù gěi tāmen jiāo shuǐ.
As soon as the soil dried, I watered them.
可是不到一个月，它们全死了。
Kěshì bú dào yí gè yuè, tāmen quán sǐ le.
But in less than a month they all died.
我很难过，不知道自己哪里做错了。
Wǒ hěn nánguò, bù zhīdào zìjǐ nǎlǐ zuò cuò le.
I was sad and did not know what I had done wrong.
楼下的阿姨看见我，问我怎么了。
Lóu xià de āyí kànjiàn wǒ, wèn wǒ zěnme le.
The auntie downstairs saw me and asked what was wrong.
她种了三十年的菜，什么都懂。
Tā zhòng le sān shí nián de cài, shénme dōu dǒng.
She has grown vegetables for thirty years and knows everything.
她上来看了看，笑了。
Tā shànglái kàn le kàn, xiào le.
She came up, took a look, and smiled.
她说，水喝得太多，菜也受不了。
Tā shuō, shuǐ hē de tài duō, cài yě shòubuliǎo.
She said, too much water is also too much for the plants.
土不干，就不要再浇水。
Tǔ bù gān, jiù búyào zài jiāo shuǐ.
If the soil is not dry, do not water them again.
菜跟人一样，也要晒太阳。
Cài gēn rén yíyàng, yě yào shài tàiyáng.
Like people, vegetables also need the sun.
听了她的话，我又种了一次。
Tīng le tā dehuà, wǒ yòu zhòng le yí cì.
Following her words, I planted again.
这次我只在土干的时候才浇水。
Zhè cì wǒ zhǐ zài tǔ gān de shíhou cái jiāo shuǐ.
This time I only watered them when the soil was dry.
每天早上，我把花盆转一个方向。
Měi tiān zǎoshang, wǒ bǎ huā pén zhuǎn yí gè fāngxiàng.
Every morning I turned the flowerpots around.
让每一棵菜都能见到太阳。
Ràng měi yì kē cài dōu néng jiàn dào tàiyáng.
So that every plant could see the sun.
两个月后，西红柿红了。
Liǎng gè yuè hòu, xīhóngshì hóng le.
Two months later the tomatoes turned red.
我摘下一个，尝了一口。
Wǒ zhāi xià yí gè, cháng le yì kǒu.
I picked one and took a bite.
有点酸，可是我心里觉得特别甜。
Yǒu diǎn suān, kěshì wǒ xīnlǐ juéde tèbié tián.
It was a little sour, but in my heart it tasted very sweet.
我给阿姨送去了八个。
Wǒ gěi āyí sòng qù le bā gè.
I brought eight of them to the auntie downstairs.
她吃着说，你现在也是种菜的人了。
Tā chī zhe shuō, nǐ xiànzài yě shì zhòng cài de rén le.
While eating she said, now you are a real vegetable grower.
今年春天，我又种了黄瓜。
Jīnnián chūntiān, wǒ yòu zhòng le huángguā.
This spring I planted cucumbers again.
阿姨说，明年要教我种新的菜。
Āyí shuō, míngnián yào jiāo wǒ zhǒng xīn de cài.
The auntie said next year she will teach me to grow something new.
HearMandarin