PLANTS MAKE US HAPPIER

If we fill our time taking care of plants we can get rid of stress, it is a scientifically proved thing. Taking care of our green friends (the ones with leaves not Martians!) we will discover new hidden sides of our personality and will get to know better how to love and care for others, firstly because a plant that we won’t care for will die for sure.

Accepting a plant we are assuming a new responsibility, we are adopting a breathing being. This way, we learn just what it means to pay attention to those around you.

We have to concentrate over needs that are exterior to our ego. We become aware of the needs of another being: we know how much water the plant needs, how much light it gets, the intervals it needs to receive water again, and slowly we will transfer these cares and abilities in our social relations. We become more and more aware of others. Visual contact with a beautiful plant makes us realize our own beauty.

Studies show more and more that taking care of plants can be the most efficient method to improve the physical and emotional general condition. They have a serene effect, they can reduce stress and relax muscles and therefore improve the mood people taking care of them are in.

Different studies have demonstrated that the existence of plants reduce mental exhaustion. When we are overwhelmed with work, we just have to look up for a couple of minutes to a plant and we’ll instantly feel more relaxed. In conclusion, plants fascinate and attract people, they break boredom and monotony generated by forced attention. The oxygen generated by plants creates a feeling of mental agility.

Some big plants placed on the right spot will help us insolate ourselves from annoying surrounding noises. The technique is the same as the one of hanging paintings in an empty room to minimize the echo effects. The thick leaves will absorb a part of the noises, including the sound of the phone, Xerox, printer or coffee maker, making these sounds a little bit friendlier.

Lucky Bamboo

If you wish to place on your desk green interior plants that require a minimum of care then the lucky bamboo can be exactly what you are looking for. Despite the name, Lucky Bamboos are not bamboos at all, they just look like ones.

They caring necessities are minimal: all you need to do is provide them with regular cleaning, change the water from their recipient weekly, lots of light but without direct sunlight. You don’t need to reproduce them. Monthly the plant is to be removed from its pot, washed under an water jet – the roots also – and placed back in the pot after it has been itself washed and the water replaced.

The plant has a green segmented body of about half inch width that normally growth vertically and produces one or more additional ramifications with leaves. The body shall be cut at the desired height and sealed with wax, just above one of the ramification. This will stop growth and will be good for the development of ramifications.

By manipulating the light, the lucky bamboos can be determined to grow in a spiral.

In the orient, lucky bamboos already tend to replace flower bouquets. This is because they are also kept in water recipients but their life is long and they keep their decorative aspect for a long time.

Lucky bamboos are offered separated or in special arrangements. The number and the dimension of the plants in the arrangement is not left to hazard because there are precise significations for each type of arrangement.

The meanings of the number of stairs the plants form:

• three stairs bring happiness, health and a long life

• five stairs stimulate the 5^th elements of life

• six stairs bring health

• eight stairs bring development and prosperity

• ten stairs symbolize perfection and fulfillment

- twenty-one stairs bring a powerful blessing

So if you want to get them just for you, at home or at the office, or if you want to make a meaningful present, lucky bamboos are a good option. Everyone loves them and they are better than some flowers that will die in a few days. Lucky bamboos last out for months and are easy to please.

No Dig Gardening

The idea of do-dig gardening was developed by an Australian named Esther Deans. It was originally both developed both as a labor saving idea, and a method to rejuvenate badly depleted soil in a vegetable garden.

The process involves starting with layers of newspaper, and by adding lucerne hay, straw and compost in succeeding layers, you can create a growing medium without resorting to heavy digging, and one that is rich in nutrients and which will simplify weeding and encourage your much desired plants to grow. The layers compost together, and greatly encourage earthworms. The gardens are maintained by adding manure, compost, etc., and should not be dug up, as this will undo the good work. I have used this approach to creating vegetable gardens, and it certainly does work.

The principle of not digging has sound foundations. Excessive cultivation of the soil, especially when very wet or very dry, will damage the structure of the soil, and lead to compaction. Such excessive cultivation can also discourage the earthworms, and they are the best free labor a gardener has.

Some followers of permaculture and organic gardening have translated no-dig into never-dig, which I believe is sadly mistaken. If you start with a base soil that is badly compacted, then your no-dig garden will initially work well, but you may find your garden does not continue to perform well. The fertile layer you have built up will encourage the earthworms, but we do know that the worms need to shelter from excessively hot, dry, cold or wet conditions. They have been found to seek shelter from extreme conditions by burrowing more deeply into the soil, sometime many feet down. If they cannot shelter in this way, it is my contention that they will die out or move out.

My belief is that an initial cultivation of the soil before you apply the no-dig system will guarantee a better environment for the worms, and thus a better garden for growing your plants, over the longer term.

By all means give the no-dig approach a try – you will be pleased with the result.

Roses

Roses are those small little wonderful miracles which do wonders of highest orders, which a million words can’t do. The flowers speak when the lips seal with emotions, which are so tough to put in words. The best of the gifts that one can give is roses, a bouquet or may be just a single bud of the flower that has not yet bloomed can unfurl the heart filled with emotions.

Rose can be said to be a synonym of love. The beauty of rose has always cast a spell on people which are strong enough to bind them in love bonds. Different colours of roses signify different feelings. A red rose has always been a sign of LOVE. The most romantic gift that two love birds can give is a red rose. Pink roses have always meant admiration and the yellow rose’s suit best to show the depth of a platonic love. White has been the choice of all the creative minds, showing peace, innocence and respect. And the best to show the passion which can drive one crazy is the orange colour. Roses have been the best choice of an artist who paints a thousand colours on his canvas to capture the beauty of all kinds, beauty of nature, beauty of women and beauty of minds.

The original name of rose (Aeolic wrodon) comes from the Persian name “vrda” which is “rhodon” in Greek. There are many species of roses, some are considered to be the wild species of roses. The records of different species of roses show that there are about 100 to 150 species, but the botanists claim that there are not as many as 150 species but it sums up around 100 species only.

There are two kinds of roses, the old roses which were discovered before 1867 and the modern roses which include Hybrid Teas, Floribundas and Grandifloras. The most lovable roses, the English roses, were created David Austin, an English rose hybridizer, in the year 1969. These roses are often called David Austin roses.

People are really fascinated about growing roses at home and make their home, heaven, where pretty flowers bloom and gives their lives new zing. But roses are that species of flower which is the most difficult to grow. They need high maintenance and proper regular care. Roses should be pruned just before the spring when the buds start appearing on the branches. The bushes and the dead branches should be cut in proper time; the shear used for cutting the braches should be sharpened. Roses need special care during the winters. They should be fed water often to keep them healthy, but watering should not be done directly and should be given very lightly.

Roses inspire the lover within everyone and this sheer love drives people crazy and they go about loving this flower by actually becoming the gardener, and growing roses at home or buying them from any florists shop. The florists go high in demand during special occasions like Christmas, Yew Year but also in off-season their business never witnesses any downfall. People buy it in every season and every occasion. This has become a very high-profile industry now, so big that there are many companies’ which has the business of selling bouquets of different styles specially made for special occasions on the net. People can now send bouquets of roses from one country to another, and these companies also make it possible of delivering the bouquets on the same date.

A few sites one can shop flowers are:-

www.dotflowers.com

www.onlineflowers.com

A Dream Home That’s No Longer a Dream

Who hasn’t dreamed of redesigning their current home or building their dream home? Unfortunately, for many of us, the cost of hiring an architect just isn’t in our budget. Now with the help of Home Designer Pro 7.0, we can easily do it ourselves.

Chief Architect, Inc. is a leading developer of 3D architectural home design software for consumers, home enthusiasts, builders, designers, and architects. In January 2006, they were recognized as the fastest growing publisher in the home design and gardening software category for 2005, making it the number one growing home design and gardening software publisher.

Better Homes and Gardens software product reviewers give it two thumbs up for ease of use. You can quickly jump-in and begin by using their pre-designed room feature or start from scratch and define your own rooms. When you are finished outside, take a quick spin outside and try your hand at either landscaping or deck design.

If you are thinking about designing your dream home from the ground up, the project-cost estimator budgeting tools provides you with a realistic idea of what you can expect to pay and the materials you will need to do the job. Then, you can easily add-in or change features with a simple click of the mouse.

The software suite is loaded with additional features including the ability:

• to create a virtual walk-through of your house

• to design and visualize using 3-D models

• to use a complete set of CAD tools to detail your designs

• to choose from a library of more than 4,300 design items

• to select 1,500 sample home plans

• to review 30 training videos with "how to" information

Not sure which of the BHG products are right for your needs? No problem. BHG provides a comprehensive comparison matrix on their website at http://www.homedesignersoftware.com/pdf/Land-vs-Base-vs-Suite-vs-Deluxe-Pro.pdf. Now, you can easily locate which of their six home design products are right for you. Depending on your needs, you can expect to pay between $59 and $149.