Wednesday, October 28, 2009

HOW SAFE IS YOUR PLANT TREE AND YOUR PROPERTY DURING STORM

A tree is never in greater danger than during a storm. That can mean a threat from pounding rain and hail, from the fury of the wind, from the scorch of lightning or the weight of ice on branches and leaves. You may also have to remove a tree that endangers life and property during or after a storm. The key to a tree's survival is the care you give before the storm, keeping it healthy with proper space to grow.
Every tree will face at least one storm during its lifetime.

Here are seven tips designed to help minimize the impact of storms on trees and property in your yard or in your forest:
Tip 1 - Think about young trees growing up when planting. Trees will mature and grow tall so avoid planting near wires, too close to a building, or in shallow soils or on steep banks.
Tip 2 - Brittle species should not be planted on sites where breakage is a problem. Brittle species include elm, willow, box elder, poplar and silver maple.
Tip 3 - Where early ice storms are common, avoid planting species that hold their leaves late into fall.
Tip 4 - During excavation around trees, avoid damaging or cutting roots.
Tip 5 - Begin an annual pruning program when trees are young. Prune dead or weakened limbs and excessive branches from crowns.
Tip 6 - For particularly valuable trees, hire a professional arborist to strengthen a tree by installing cabling or bracing on weak limbs and split crotches.
Tip 7 - Keep the tree healthy by watering, fertilizing, and protecting the soil from compaction.

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Monday, October 26, 2009

TIPS ON FASCINATING FACTS ABOUT BATS

Did you know that bats help control pests? In fact, some species feast on as many as 1,000 mosquitoes an hour while others dine on thousands of pest beetles and moths a night.
Here are some other fascinating facts about bats:

1.There are more than 1,000 species of bats in the world. All of these bats make up about a quarter of all mammals in existence.
2.Bats help many plants: Hundreds of plant species rely on the pollinating and seed dispersal services of bats including bananas, avocados and mangos.
3.Bats are the most diverse group of mammals: The smallest weighs less than a penny and the largest has a wingspan of up to six feet!
4.Bats are the only mammal that can truly fly.

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Thursday, October 22, 2009

NONI JUICE FOR YOUR PETS’ HEALTH

This not a myth, it is a reality. Adding Noni juice to the food of dogs, cats and other animals has been shown to help strengthen animals' immune systems, helping to fight viral and bacterial infections in the chest, skin, mouth and throat. Animals do not experience placebo effects so the benefits of using Noni can be easily seen.

Veterinarians, pet owners, farmers, and racehorse owners have been using Noni juice products with great success. Animals with diverse health conditions such as arthritis, injuries, West Nile virus, food allergies, heart problems, cancer, bowel disorders, muscular-skeletal disorders and other conditions have benefited from these potent Noni products. Noni juice has also been used in combination with alternative medicines for maximum effect and appears to reduce the amount of allopathic medication needed for most animal health conditions.


TO PLACE YOUR ORDER? CALL AND REMEMBER TO USE THIS ID NUMBER: 2394865 WHEN YOU VISIT ANY NONI STORE.

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HOW TO MAINTAIN A COLOURFUL GARDEN FOR ALL SEASONS

Sometimes it is difficult to achieve colors for all seasons. There is no speck of doubt that everyone would love to see a garden full of blooms throughout a year.

Lets us see all the ways which will help us to keep our gardens in color all season:

Deadheading
Removing dry blossoms is the easiest and simplest way to keep your plants blooming. Annuals particularly will profit from an occasional deadheading. Flowers actually produce seeds. Once seeds are formed the plants have no reason to bear flowers any more.
Shearing
Deadheading cannot be applied to flowers that have multiple buds on their flower stalks. In this case they can be sheared unto 1/3 of the plant. This you can do till all the buds fade. This rejuvenates the plant.
Pruning
A cunning way to sustain the perennial blooms is to clip the plants in steps. Try to divide the plant into three sections like the front, center and back. As soon as the plants grow about 6-8" tall, you can cut the front and center by about 1/3 to 1 / 2..This type of trimming will ensue plants turning into 3 levels and so it can bloom in sequence. The rear part blooms first and as it fades the center portion blooms. Finally the front part will bloom. The front section actually grows very tall and this helps in hiding all the withering plants behind it.
Re-Seeding
To extend the bloom of annuals you can re-seed quick growing annuals. This will be about 4 weeks soon after the initial seeding.
Feeding
Plants spend a lot of vigor in flowering. The more they blossom, the more food they demand. So take care and keep on adding good soil, water them properly and add fertilizer.
Produce colorful foliage
Flowers come and go but the foliage remains. Sprinkle the beds in your garden with a few shrubs and include sprinting annuals. You will have colors through the season.

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STAYING SAFE AROUND WILD ANIMALS

Animals can be great fun, but it's important to know how to be safe when you're with them. Both indoor animals and outdoor animals need to be treated kindly all the time. This means different things depending on the animal and the situation. With a wild animal, being kind may mean staying far away so the animal doesn't feel threatened.
The Great Outdoors
Stepping outside can mean a world full of great animals to see — from squirrels in trees to birds in flight. In some parts of the world, kids may see snakes, black bats, or even cool coyotes. And don't forget raccoons, skunks, and other critters that come out in some places at night.

The rule in the great outdoors is simple:
Don't touch or go near an animal. Although some of these animals may look cool or even cute, leave them alone. These animals aren't like regular pets. They're not used to being around people and may bite or attack if you come near them.
Don't ever try to feed a wild animal. Bird feeders are OK, but other animals, even if they look hungry, shouldn't ever be fed. When it comes to these animals, it's better for everyone if you stay away and check them out at the zoo and on the Internet.

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Friday, October 16, 2009

HOW DEFORESTATION INCREASES GLOBAL WARMING.

When trees are burned or cut down the CO2they had stored escapes back into the air which means the less forests, the fewer plants to convert CO2 into oxygen. Trees cut down for building do not contribute this CO2 and the process continues if those trees cut down are replanted. This, in this case it helps the issue of global warming.

Global warming is caused by an elevation in the green house gases that halo our planet. Atmospheric gases such as water vapor, CO2, methane, and ozone are responsible for impeding the loss of heat away from the Earth. The concentration of these particular gases, directly dictate the universal temperature found on Earth. Thus the effect of global warming is further exacerbated by deforestation because the removal of densely forested areas decreases the number of the CO2 consuming vegetation.
Photosynthetic organisms, such as plants, undergo a "carbon fixing" cycle which utilizes atmospheric carbon dioxide and synthesizes it into metabolic intermediates (such as carbohydrates). Indirectly, deforestation disrupts the delicate balance between the carbon dioxide produced and consumed. An increase in the concentration of carbon dioxide, along with other green house gases, leads to an increase in the global temperature.

Two interesting things to point out on this issue:
Man produces a small portion of CO2 (about 6% of the total and 0.28% of all green house gas). The number, density and overall acres of forest have increased for the past century in North America by thousands of acres. We even define a forest more densely today than we did in historical times. We have doubled the board feet in a given acre to be called a forest.

Destroying forests reduces the earth's ability to absorb airborne carbon. Trees as well as water, ice etc absorb carbon that is in the air. The fewer trees there are, the less there are to absorb carbon. This would lead to more carbon in the air from man-made and natural sources. More and more is released all the time and less is reabsorbed into "contained" sources such as trees and water. If we stop deforestation by 50%, it will stop 500 billion tons of CO2 going to the atmosphere!!!

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Thursday, October 15, 2009

STOPING GLOBAL WARMING STARTS WITH INCREASED EFFICIENCY

Increasing the efficiency of cars and minivans, power plants and even light bulbs will not only help curb global warming, it will help cut air pollution, protect our wilderness and coasts from drilling and stimulate economic growth.

Burning fossil fuels not only emits carbon dioxide, the primary global warming culprit, but also soot, smog and carbon monoxide. Reducing our dependence on fossil fuels cuts pollution and reduces the demand to drill in sensitive wilderness areas like the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. It reduces the amount of oil we transport, lessening the chances of spills. Consumers benefit because efficiency costs less than the energy it saves. Finally, it helps our economy by cutting oil imports, which account for one-third of our national trade deficit.

One of the easiest ways for individual consumers and small businesses to save energy and money is to use compact fluorescent lights. Replacing a 60-watt incandescent bulb with a 15-watt compact fluorescent bulb that emits as much light saves over 400 pounds of coal. The compact fluorescent bulb costs about $15, but lasts 10,000 hours and pays for itself in two to six years, depending on how often the bulb is used.

Unfortunately, the energy market isn't working. Businesses often make decisions based on short-term paybacks, ignoring the long-term savings from energy efficiency investments. Buildings are seldom built by the people who will pay the energy bills, so construction cost takes precedence over long-term operating costs. Similarly, consumers aren't looking at pollution reduction and long-term savings when they buy a car. They tend to be more concerned about styling and comfort than fuel efficiency.

That's why energy activists must work to influence public policy and to educate consumers. Consumers can't buy energy-efficient appliances if stores don't stock them, but stores won't stock them if they think people will balk at higher upfront costs for greater efficiency. It's up to the federal government to intervene and require a minimum level of efficiency for all consumer products from appliances to cars. In cleaning our air we are reducing threats to our wilderness and shores.

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Wednesday, October 14, 2009

THE EFFECT OF GLOBAL WARMING ON WILDLIFE


Today, everyone is talking about Global Warming, what exactly is Global Warming?
Global Warming is defined as the increase of the average temperature on Earth. As the Earth is getting hotter, disasters like hurricanes, droughts and floods are getting more frequent. Here is some of its effect on wildlife

Polar Bears
Polar bears, like their privileged springtime prey the ringed seal, depend heavily on sea ice for their survival. Polar bears move from ice flow to ice flow in search of the young seals. With rising temperatures, the thinning ice leaves
fewer places for both the polar bears to hunt and the seals to raise their young.
Arctic Foxes
The arctic fox is a phenomenon. Its paws are covered with thick fur to protect its feet in winter, and it is an excellent burrower which allows it to dig dens and warm itself against the arctic chill. In recent years, warmer temperatures have driven the arctic fox farther and farther north in search of more suitable, cooler habitat.

Adelie Penguins
When we think of Antarctica, it is with visions of waddling, tuxedoed penguins. Today, however, these iconic creatures may be in peril as a result of changes to their climate. Rising temperatures are causing the amount of sea ice to diminish, which in turn causes the amount of algae in the water to decrease. Many tiny organisms, including the krill shrimp which forms the foundation of the Adelie penguin’s diet, cannot survive without this important food source.
So what can we do to reverse this situation? Is this precious wildlife going on extinction too?

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Friday, October 09, 2009

THE ENDANGERED SPECIE: WALRUS

In fact, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service recently reported that 131 walruses, mostly calves and yearlings, were trampled to death in Alaska by other walruses. This is a clear and urgent signal that the sea ice is nowhere to be found.

The walrus typically spends much of its time resting on sea ice. But, as global warming melts its icy habitat, it has no place else to go but to land. It’s not uncommon for walruses to gather on shore in the fall months, but they are currently gathering in alarmingly large numbers and arriving much earlier than in previous years.
On land, the situation continues to be deadly, particularly for young pups that could easily be crushed. The more than 3,500 animals crowded together in one area in Alaska could lead to additional stampedes and deaths. What’s more, these walruses face nutritional and physical stress since they have to work twice as hard to obtain food. Instead of diving off the ice down to the sea floor where they feed, they now have to swim long distances from the shore to and from their feeding grounds.

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Wednesday, October 07, 2009

HOT WHETHER SAFETY TIPS FOR DOGS KEEPERS

1.Outdoor pets often suffer from extreme hot weather, especially when they do not have adequate fresh, cool water or ample shade/shelter from the blazing sun. Bring animals inside during hot weathe.
2.Avoid chaining or tethering a dog in the yard. He/she may get twisted and become unable to reach shade or water, or may knock over his/her water dish.

3.Hydration is critical to help your pet regulate his/her body temperature. Be sure that pets have access to plenty of fresh, cool water at all times - indoors and out.
4.In homes without air conditioning, use fans to keep air circulating or keep the animal in a cooler area of the house, such as the basement, during the heat of the day.


5.Pets should avoid exercise or vigorous activity during the heat of the day. Instead, take walks in the early morning or cooler evening hours. Avoid hot concrete or asphalt surfaces as they may cause damage or discomfort to the animal’s paw pads.
6.Small dogs, and those with short noses such as pugs and bulldogs, are especially susceptible to heatstroke. However, it is a concern for all pets during hot weather.


7.Do not leave animals in parked cars. Even on a relatively mild 85-degree day in the shade, with the windows cracked, the temperature inside the car will reach 120 degrees in minutes. A dog or cat’s body temperature is approximately 101 - 102 degrees. He/she can only withstand the heat a short time before it becomes a life or death situation.

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Monday, October 05, 2009

HOW TO CARE FOR YOUR DOG'S TEETH

Bad breath in pets, particularly dogs, is often joked about, but it is not a laughing matter. Dental disease affects up to 80% of pets over the age of three, and just like humans, there can be serious consequences of poor dental health.

How many teeth do dogs and cats have, anyway?

Dogs start out with 28 deciduous (baby) teeth, cats start out with 26 deciduous teeth. By six months of age, these baby teeth fall out and are replaced by permanent teeth, 42 in the dog and 30 in the cat.


Will I find the deciduous teeth, and what happens when they don't fall out on their own?

You may or may not find the teeth as they fall out. As dogs play and chew on toys, you might see a tooth. Likewise, as a cat grooms, you may find a tooth in the fur. If the deciduous teeth don't fall out and the permanent teeth erupt under them, this can lead to problems, such as increased tartar formation, malocclusion problems, and gingival (gum) irritation.


When should dental care start with my pet?

The earlier the better. With the help of your Veterinarian, be on the lookout for retained deciduous teeth and malocclusion (bad bite) problems. Your Veterinarian can teach you how to care for your pet's teeth and gums early on.

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