Plant Doctor

Plants are powerful healers

There is general agreement amongst scientists that plants improve the indoor environment and are useful in fighting the modern phenomenon of Sick Building Syndrome (SBS).

No specific cause of SBS has been identified but poor air quality, excessive background noise and inadequate control of light and humidity are all thought to be important factors.
Because plants have large surface areas and exchange gases and water with their surroundings, plants can help tackle some of these issues.

Particular benefits of interior plants include:

1.    Reducing carbon dioxide levels

2.    Increasing humidity

3.    Reducing levels of certain pollutants, such as benzene and nitrogen dioxide

4.    Reducing airborne dust levels

5.    Keeping air temperatures down

House Plants do more than just brighten up a room with color and living energy. Along with being pleasing to the eye, they bring real health benefits to your body. Not only do complaints about headaches, stress, heart/circulation-symptoms and colds decrease when indoor plants are present.

The good news is that a classic NASA study found that common house plants could improve air quality. In fact, they reported that houseplants were able to remove up to 87 percent of air toxins in 24 hours. The recommendation? Use 15 to 18 "good-sized" house plants in 6- to 8-inch diameter containers for an 1,800 square-foot house.

Here are a few plants and one recipe that showcase their healing ability.

Aloe vera

Aloe is a cactus-like succulent plant with thick, fleshy leaves. The aloe family probably originated in Africa, but it has been cultivated all over the world for centuries.

The gel from Aloe Vera leaves has been used for thousands of years to treat wounds, skin infections, burns and other skin conditions. It may also be the most important plant discovered for digestive health. More than 60 million North Americans suffer from frequent heartburn and drinking homegrown aloe juice will reduce the acid in your stomach immediately.

Directions for use:

· Using a sharp knife, peel away the rind from aloe leaves to extract six ounces of gel.

· Discard the rind.

· Peel away the top yellow layer (the aloe latex) and discard.

· Transfer the aloe gel to a blender and add the freshly squeezed juice of half a lemon and 1/2 cup of water.

· Blend on high speed until smooth (but not frothy). Drink immediately.

Haskap

These berries are touted to be the super berries of the coming years. It's known by the Japanese as the 'fruit of the longevity'. The Haskap fruit is similar to blueberries in colour, but it is elongated and slightly cylindrical - more like a mini plum. The Haskap berry is known to have five times the amount of anti-oxidant found in a blueberry, making it an antioxidant superfood. It helps prevent heart disease, cancers, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes and osteoporosis. It's also well suited to the North American climate.

Directions for use:

· 1 cup haskap berries, fresh or frozen
1/2 cup strawberries
1/2 cup raspberries
2 cups coconut milk
1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
1 tsp chia seeds
8 ice cubes

· In a blender, combine all the ingredients above (sweeten with honey to taste) and blend on high speed until smooth.

Comfrey

This plant is nature's answer to a band-aid. Comfrey's ability to help heal wounds comes from a compound called allantoin, which is believed to reduce inflammation and promote new cell growth.

Modern science seems to back up traditional beliefs. In one study, for example, a 35% comfrey cream applied topically to ankle sprains was very effective at treating tenderness, swelling, and pain even when compared with anti-inflammatory pharmaceutical creams.

Directions for use:

· In a blender, puree the comfrey leaves with enough water to make a thick paste.

· In a small heatproof bowl over a pot of boiling water (acting as a double boiler), melt the coconut oil and beeswax, stirring occasionally.

· Add the pureed comfrey and mix thoroughly. Transfer the mixture to a small glass jar with a tight fitting lid. Once the cream has cooled and solidified, apply it liberally to the affected area. The cream will keep in a cool, dry place for a year.

Capsicum

This hot pepper has the ability to block “substance P”, capsicum is also helpful for metabolism and weight loss.

If you already “like it hot,” you may have an advantage when it comes to keeping off the pounds. Research shows capsicum can help you lose weight in three ways: by increasing your metabolism (you can burn an extra 50 or more calories per day), improving your energy expenditure, and reducing your appetite.

Directions for use:

· Consume 10 grams of cayenne pepper with food daily to eat less

· Alternative to having in your food, you can make your own easy-to-swallow capsules at home.

· 1,000 milligrams empty gelatin capsules (purchase at your local health food store)

· Sun dry 30 peppers and place in a blender, cover with the lid, and pulverize to a fine powder.

· Take 5 capsules twice daily with food to enjoy a significantly reduced appetite and an increased metabolism

208 E. Iron Avenue
Salina, KS 67401
Local: (785) 827-0351
Toll Free: (800) 499-NOOK (6665)http://flowernooksalina.com/
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The Poinsettia

Selecting Your Poinsettia

The plant you choose should have dark green foliage. fallen yet low or damaged leaves indicate poor handling or fertilization, lack of water or a root disease problem. The colorful flower bracts (red, pink, white or bicolor pink and white) Should be in proportion to the plant and pot size. Little or no pollen should be showing oil the actual flowers (those red or green button-like parts in the center of the colorful bracts).

The length of time your poinsettia will give you pleasure in your home is dependent on (1) the maturity of the plant, (2) when you buy it, and (3) how you treat the plant. With care, poinsettias should retain their beauty for weeks and some varieties will stay attractive for months.

• After you have made your poinsettia selection, make sure it is wrapped properly because exposure to low temperatures even for a few minutes can damage the bracts and leaves.
• Unwrap your poinsettia carefully and place in indirect light. Six hours of light daily is ideal. Keep the plant from touching cold windows.
• Keep poinsettias away from warm or cold drafts from radiators, air registers or open doors and windows.
• Ideally poinsettias require daytime temperatures of 60 to 70°F and night time temperatures around 55°F. High temperatures will shorten the plant’s life. Move the plant to a cooler room at night, if possible.
• Check the soil daily. Be sure to punch holes in foil so water can drain into a saucer. Water when soil is dry. Allow water to drain into the saucer and discard excess water. Wilted plants will tend to drop bracts sooner.
• Fertilize the poinsettia if you keep it past the holiday season. Apply a houseplant fertilizer once a month. Do not fertilize when it is in bloom.

After Christmas Care

January - March: Keep watering the poinsettia whenever the surface is dry.

April: Starting April 1st, gradually decrease water, allowing them to get dry between watering’s. Be careful the stem does not begin to shrivel. This is a sign the plant is too stressed and is dying. In a week or two, when the plant has acclimated to this drying process, move it to a cool spot like the basement or a heated garage. You want to keep it at about 60 degrees F.

May: In mid-May, cut the stems back to about 4 inches and repot in a slightly larger container, with new potting soil. Water it well. Place the newly potted plant back into the brightest window you have and once again keep it at a temperature of 65 - 75 degrees F. Continue watering whenever the surface of the soil feels dry.

Watch for new growth. Once new growth appears, begin fertilizing every two weeks with a complete fertilizer. Follow fertilizer label recommendations.

June: More the poinsettia outside, pot and all. Keep it in a partially shaded location and maintain your watering and fertilizing schedule.

July: In early July, pinch back each stem by about one inch. This is to encourage a stout, well branched plant. If left unpinched, the poinsettia will grow tall and spindly.

August: By mid-August, the stems should have branched and leafed out. Once again, pinch or cut the new stems, leaving 3-4 leaves on each shoot. Bring the plant back indoors and back into your brightest window. Continue watering and fertilizing.

September: Continue regular watering and fertilizing. Make sure the temperature stays above 65 degrees F.

October Poinsettias are short-day plants, meaning their bud set is affected by the length of daylight. To re-bloom, poinsettias need about 10 weeks with 12 hours or less of sunlight per day. You will have to artificially create these conditions and it's crucial that you be diligent.

Beginning October 1st, keep your plant in complete darkness from 5 pm to 8 am. Any exposure to light will delay blooming. Use an opaque box or material to block out light. Many people place their plants in a closest, but if light gets in through the cracks or if you open and use the closet, it will affect the bud set.

Move the plant back to the sunny window during the daytime and continue watering and fertilizing.

November: Around the last week of November, you can stop the darkness treatment and allow the plant to remain in the window. You should see flower buds at this point

December - Stop fertilizing about December 15th. Keep watering and treat your plant the way you did when you first brought it home in bloom. If all has gone well, it should be back in bloom and ready to begin the process all over again. What about poinsettias being poisonous?

 

Bringing Plants Indoors for the Winter

The end of a summer vacation can come as a shock to some, especially to the tropical houseplants we put out on the deck and patio to reinvigorate over the summer. Once temperatures start to dip into the mid-40s (in some cases 50s), they start to risk becoming injured from the cold. Moving them from full sun and chilly nights spent outdoors to a dim and toasty room indoors can be quite a shock. Here's how to safely reintroduce them to life indoors for the winter.

Reintroduce Them Slowly

A week or so before moving your full sun plants back indoors, move them into the shade. Even the sunniest window inside your home receives lower light than your plants have been used to getting outdoors. By transitioning them to an area receiving less light before moving them indoors, you're likely to see fewer yellow or dropped leaves from the sudden adjustment to a different light intensity. This will also help them prepare for changes in humidity, air circulation, and temperature. Hint: This is also a great time to clean your windows-both inside and out!

Clean Them Up

Give your houseplants a good cleaning by removing any dead or damaged leaves, or spent flowers. Follow that up with a gentle shower from the garden hose. This is a great way to dislodge the first round of bugs and dust off their leaves before bringing them inside.

Inspect Them For Hitchhikers

Once indoors, insect problems that went unnoticed all summer can suddenly spiral out of control. To prevent this, inspect the stems and leaves of your plants (including the undersides) diligently. Submerging smaller plants in a 5-gallon bucket of water for 15 minutes is a great way to send insect scrambling for higher ground. This shouldn't be done with plants that go semi-dormant or dormant in the winter (e.g. succulents, bulbous  plants), as these plants need dry soil throughout their dormant period.
If insects are problem, treat plants with the appropriate organic insecticidal soap or horticultural spray. Repeat the treatments as directed (usually several days or weeks). Once you finally move them indoors, as an added precaution you should continue to isolate them from the plants in the rest of your house for several weeks.

Repot Them

In necessary, repot crowded or leggy plants into new containers. Leggy plants can be removed from their containers and pruned (roots and tops) in equal proportions. Make sure you scrub the pots thoroughly and replant them in fresh, sterilized potting soil.

Reduce Feeding

Plants tend to receive less light and therefore most grow more slowly once they are brought back indoors. Now is the time to reduce the strength and frequency of your fertilizing regime. If your plants go into a semi-dormant or dormant state over the winter, stop fertilizing completely and resume fertilizing once you see signs of new growth.

Increase Humidity

Humidity levels tend to be much lower indoors than outdoors. This is especially true once our furnaces kick in. As your plants adjust to life back inside, it may be beneficial to mist them frequently or set them on a humidity tray (a tray filled with water and pebbles). As the water evaporates, it will raise the humidity around the plants.

Watch Your Watering

Overwatering is the fastest way to kill a houseplant. Outdoor potted plants may have required frequent (even daily) watering during sunny, breezy days. Now that they are back indoors, they don't need as much water-especially during rainy, or cloudy fall weather as they won't get enough light to dry out. Always let the surface of the soil get dry to the touch between watering.

 

Mother Day and Flowers

   May we suggest?

With all the different kinds of flowers out there, we know it can be challenging to decide what to get for Mom. That's why our staff pulled together a list of suggestions for Mother's Day

 

The Duchess

The graceful sculpted design of this elegant pink glass vase makes a stunning presentation. An unmistakably feminine choice for all occasions - Mother's Day, Birthday and Everyday.

The Classical Lady
Roses: Once a classic, always a classic. Send a assorted mix of pink, lavender and red for a truly stunning

 Garden Vase Bouquets

Want to be her favorite! Send an impressionist masterpiece that will showcase a variety of extraordinary blooms. No matter the occasion, this classic bouquet is a stroke of beauty.

 Mom’s Garden Baskets

Surprise Mom with this lasting bouquet-it will make you both smile! Get a handle on spring with this delightful array of floral favorites in a charming handle basket filled to the brim with love.

•     Ask about our Birdhouse Basket: Oval basket with a whimsical wooden birdhouse surrounded by pink and yellow flowers and topped with a bird seeking home!

Fleurinistra :  The sky is the limit

Send a trendy, artistic arrangement of fashion forward floral for the art lover. 

Totally Awesome Plants

Send a Green or blooming plant. The Flower Nook has over thirty different varieties of plants that can be foiled wrapped, placed into a keepsake container or combine with a fun add on to make a statement of your love and appreciation.  

Need more:  Ask about………

Kansas Foods and Chocolate:

Balloons

Designer Soap

Jewelry

One of a kind art

   Need Help Deciding?

      Please explore the Flower Nook web site, Face book .

                     http://flowernooksalina.com/
                     https://www.facebook.com/TheFlowerNookSalina    

           Look in our Cooler!

                          For a peek at what is currently in our cooler, click below!

                                  http://flowernook.greenboxfloral.com

 

 

One of our staff would be happy to assist you with your floral Mother's Day selection.

     

208 E. Iron Avenue
Salina, KS 67401
Local: (785) 827-0351
Toll Free: (800) 499-NOOK (6665)

 

Thank you for taking care of us!

Words from Wayne 

It is our privileges to be part of an industry that recognizes and honors all those positions that keep our homes away from home - the office - running smoothly. 

Please join us by saying Thank you to your Administrative Professional staff. 


 For sending forms and fixing files,
poring through the paper piles,
Completing tasks with time to spare,
keeping track of what goes where,
Placing orders for supplies,
staying calm when tensions rise,
Typing e-mails and reports,
Handling crises of all sorts, Taking calls throughout the day,
being great in every way


Did you know?

Administrative Professionals Day highlights the important role of administrative professionals in all sectors of the modern economy worldwide. It is on the Wednesday of Administrative Professionals Week®, which is on the last full week of April.

During World War II, there was an increased need for skilled administrative personnel, particularly in the United States. The National Secretaries Association was formed to recognize the contributions of secretaries and other administrative personnel to the economy, to support their personal development and to help attract people to administrative careers in the field. The association's name was changed to Professional Secretaries International in 1981 and, finally, the International Association of Administrative Professionals (IAAP) in 1998.
The first National Secretaries Week was organized in 1952 in conjunction with the United States Department of Commerce and various office supply and equipment manufacturers. The Wednesday of that week became known as National Secretaries Day. 

As the organization gained international recognition, the events became known as Professional Secretaries Week and Professional Secretaries Day. In 2000, IAAP announced that names of the week and the day were changed to Administrative Professionals Week and Administrative Professionals Day to keep pace with changing job titles and expanding responsibilities of the modern administrative workforce. 

A Large and Growing Profession

Today, there are more than 4.1 million secretaries and administrative assistants working in the United States, and 8.9 million people working in various administrative support roles. (U.S. Dept. of Labor)

· 476,000 administrative professionals are employed in Canada, including 365,670 secretaries, 26,390 executive assistants and 84,140 clerical supervisors. (Statistics Canada)

· 362,000 administrative assistant and secretarial positions will be added in the U.S. between 2008 and 2018, representing growth of 8.5 percent. More than 82,000 office supervisor positions will be added. (U.S. Dept. of Labor) 

Many work environments across the world observe this event.

In Australia, it is celebrated on the first Friday in May (May 2 in 2014).
In France it is celebrated on the third Thursday in April (April 17 in 2014).
In New Zealand, it is on the third Wednesday of April (April 16 in 2014).
In North America, it is celebrated on the Wednesday of the last full week of April (April 23 in 2014).
In South Africa, it is celebrated annually on the first Wednesday of September (September 3 in 2014).


Keep the office running smoothly:

                                                      Remember to say thank you.


Whether your Admin Pro is a multitasking master, the office glue, the wisest staff member at the office, or the chief string puller, recognize their contribution to the office this Administrative Professionals Day with a floral gift from the Flower Nook.
    We have a variety of gifts to choose from such as plants, Kansas Foods, floral bouquets, balloons, candles, jewelry and one of a kind art.

PP: Discovery of Plants

Peggy's Pointers
Helping you become more floral Savvy each Sunday!

World Floral and the discovery of plants

 

 An partnership agreement by the Garden and three other leading botanical gardens to create the first online catalog ( called World Floral)  of plants by 2020 is well underway The project,  World Flora, will make comprehensive information about as many as 400,000 plant species -- including the 81 newly discovered species -- available to the international community.

 As part of their effort to catalog all plant life on Earth, Botanical Garden scientists named 81 new species of plants and fungi in 2011. They also established four new genera and two new orders of plants and fungi. Genera and orders are groupings of related species.

Researchers have found a variety of species which range in size from the diminutive alpine daises on a few inclines tall to a massive eucalyptus trees in Austria over 300 feet tall. Currently, the undisputed world's smallest flowering plants belong to the genus Wolffia. 

A recent article by J. Travis in Science News Vol. 155 discusses a remarkable new species of sulfur bacteria from the greenish ooze of ocean sediment off the coast of Namibia in southwestern Africa.

Wolffia species are free-floating thalli, green or yellow-green, and without roots. The flower is produced in a depression on the top surface of the plant body. It has one stamen and one pistil. Individuals often float together in pairs or form floating mats with related plants, such as Lemna and Spirodela species. Most species have a very wide distribution across several continents.  

Wolffia species are composed of about 40 percent protein, about the same as the soybean, making them a potential high-protein human food source. They have historically been collected from the water and eaten as a vegetable in much of Asia.

Access the link below to learn more about plants.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NeX6ST7rexs

The Flower Nook offers a variety of 20-30 different Tropical Plants to fit your needs.  We are happy to help you select the perfect plant for your home or office!