Native plants are grown from their wild relatives; their color, size, nectar, pollen production, and everything about them are authentic and have not been changed except by natural evolution. The benefits of native plants compared to hybrid and otherwise man cultivated species include a longer life span, less need for fertilizer and insecticides, increased aroma, drought resistant ( due to the very deep roots), easy to overwinter, generally disease free and the native birds, butterflies and bees love them.
Native plants are plants that have been growing here for many hundreds of years. Each area has its own native plants so in planting native plants you will want to make sure they are native to your area.
The prairies were self sustainable until the advent of plows and urban development removed most of them, leaving just a remnant of their former glory. Because native plants are so hardy they are also slow growing and require some patience to grow and establish. However as their root systems take hold (some roots go as deep as 20 feet) they will out shine any non native. Once established they will require much less maintenance than any traditional landscapes.
Some of the key benefits of using native plants:
· Provide habitat for native wildlife
· Beautiful view of waving grasses and blooming flowers
· Helps clean the air
· Helps clean the rainwater and runoff that goes to our aquifers
· Provides something of value for the next generation
Native grasses are also being tested as a possible bio fuel that would be economical and readily available. The research on this application of native grasses looks very promising and could be grown throughout the Midwest.
Ion Exchange Inc.
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Free Training Calls on Internet Marketing
============================================================
You don't want to miss these FREE Training Calls!
Generator Software ============================================================
Every Tuesday and Thursday for the next 5 weeks my friend Armand Morin will interview a different Big Seminar Faculty Member.
For one hour they will reveal the Secrets They use in their Internet marketing Business.
To Register for these FREE Training calls just Click Here now... Generator Software
Once registered you will receive a reminder prior to each call giving you the...
- Name of the Expert Faculty Member Being Interviewed - Call in information - Time of the call - A time zone converter
Don't miss these Important, FREE Training calls...Click here to Register NOW!
Generator Software
Sincerely,
Howard and Donna Bright
Ion Exchange Inc. - The Natural Gait
You don't want to miss these FREE Training Calls!
Generator Software ============================================================
Every Tuesday and Thursday for the next 5 weeks my friend Armand Morin will interview a different Big Seminar Faculty Member.
For one hour they will reveal the Secrets They use in their Internet marketing Business.
To Register for these FREE Training calls just Click Here now... Generator Software
Once registered you will receive a reminder prior to each call giving you the...
- Name of the Expert Faculty Member Being Interviewed - Call in information - Time of the call - A time zone converter
Don't miss these Important, FREE Training calls...Click here to Register NOW!
Generator Software
Sincerely,
Howard and Donna Bright
Ion Exchange Inc. - The Natural Gait
Friday, August 15, 2008
Help Create A New Book of Childhood Memories About Plants
Hi folks, we are very excited about creating a new book filled with childhood memories of learning about a plant or plants! We have compiled comments from the Iowa Native Plant Society members and those will be included in our book but before we complete it, we thought we would open the door to include comments from you if you care to be included in the book.By creating this book and offering it through our web site, we hope to generate more interest in the plant world and at the same time contribute25% of any net proceeds to the Iowa Native Plant Society.Now let me give you an example of what I am talking about. As a very young boy growing up in the foothills of the Appalachian Mtns. in Tenn., I was very much intrigued by all the plants around me. I wanted a slingshot in the worst way so I asked my Dad if he would make me one. As I watched him cut a limb from a huge tree with big leaves and many white blooms my excitement soared. He debarked the forked branch and trimmed it to fit my hand and then scored the upper part of the forks to attach the two strands of rubber inner tube which was left over from a Goodyear Double Eagle tire.He stained and varnished this master piece and handed it to me the next day as he said, "son be careful with that thing". From then on, I never forgot the name of that tree that brought so much fun into my life, the Catalpa.Won't you please consider sharing your story with us and join us in contributing to this fun and worthy venture? By participating, we assume we will have your permission to publish your comments and give you full credit..-- Howard Bright, President Ion Exchange, Inc.http://www.ionxchange.com/800-291-2143“Helping you create your own natural beauty”
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Big Seminar 12
Some people find this hard to believe (but
it's arguably the single biggest success
story on the web)...
7 years ago a young man started an internet
business in the back bedroom of his home.
Sure he wanted to be mega successful but the
idea of generating millions was far from his
mind at the time.
He wanted to just start something.
So he ventured into a niche and began to plug
away and eventually developed a business
model that worked.
Not only did it "work", but it created a
$20,000,000/year business.
The crazy part about this story is the fact
that this person still works from "home".
He now has 80 employees but they all work
virtually.
So how does one go from having no business
and no employees to building one of the most
successful online companies ever?
On September 16th, you'll find out:
Generator Software
You can listen to this live interview for
free just by registering below:
Generator Software
(it's one of the calls from a 9-part series
featuring the speakers of the upcoming Big
Seminar).
Even if you don't plan on attending the
seminar, you can still enjoy this no cost
call just by clicking the link below.
Generator Software
Enjoy!
Ion Exchange Inc
P.S I would make sure you dial in early
because the lines are expected to fill
quickly. The call times, phone number and
passcode will be immediately sent to you via
email. Go here to get the info:
Generator Software
it's arguably the single biggest success
story on the web)...
7 years ago a young man started an internet
business in the back bedroom of his home.
Sure he wanted to be mega successful but the
idea of generating millions was far from his
mind at the time.
He wanted to just start something.
So he ventured into a niche and began to plug
away and eventually developed a business
model that worked.
Not only did it "work", but it created a
$20,000,000/year business.
The crazy part about this story is the fact
that this person still works from "home".
He now has 80 employees but they all work
virtually.
So how does one go from having no business
and no employees to building one of the most
successful online companies ever?
On September 16th, you'll find out:
Generator Software
You can listen to this live interview for
free just by registering below:
Generator Software
(it's one of the calls from a 9-part series
featuring the speakers of the upcoming Big
Seminar).
Even if you don't plan on attending the
seminar, you can still enjoy this no cost
call just by clicking the link below.
Generator Software
Enjoy!
Ion Exchange Inc
P.S I would make sure you dial in early
because the lines are expected to fill
quickly. The call times, phone number and
passcode will be immediately sent to you via
email. Go here to get the info:
Generator Software
Saturday, August 2, 2008
Dr. Emoto and Ion Exchange invites you to participate this weekend in the 2008
A Message to you from Dr. Masaru Emoto.
Dear Friend,
Our planet Earth is called "Planet of Water". We have not found any
other planet in this vast universe, which contains such a great amount of liquid water. It is said that our life was born in the primordial ocean of this planet, and water is a critical element for us to maintain our life form. All life could not exist without water.
Our precious and essential resource, however, has been seriously polluted all over the world.
Lake Baikal located in eastern Siberia is the largest and cleanest supply of freshwater on the planet. It has long been admired as the"Sacred Gem" and "Pearl of Siberia". It is said that Lake Baikal is the deepest lake on Earth and holds 20% of the world's freshwater supply, which is more than the amount of water of the Five Great Lakes in the North America combined. It is also said that humanity could survive at least for forty years solely on the water of Lake Baikal.
Lake Baikal is also known as the oldest lake on Earth and was considered to have been created about 25 million years ago. It contains 1500 endemic species, of which more than half cannot be found anywhere else in the world. In 1996, the United Nation declared Lake Baikal as a World Heritage Site.
R
ecently, I was notified that the water of this precious lake has become polluted. This is why we have decided to hold this year's Ceremony to Send Love and Gratitude to Water at Lake Baikal, so that the people of the world would pay attention to this precious water resource, and not take it for granted.
We have chosen Olkhon Island, the biggest island of Lake Baikal, as the primary site for our ceremony. This island has long been known as a sacred place for Siberian shamans. There is a small cape called Shaman Rock near Khuzhir.
We invite you to join us by sending your own sincere prayer of Love and Gratitude to the water of Lake Baikal, and the waters of the world.
We at Ion Exchange would like to invite you to join us in this ceremony visit Dr. Emotos site to see the video and learn more by clicking HERE
Dear Friend,
Our planet Earth is called "Planet of Water". We have not found any
other planet in this vast universe, which contains such a great amount of liquid water. It is said that our life was born in the primordial ocean of this planet, and water is a critical element for us to maintain our life form. All life could not exist without water.Our precious and essential resource, however, has been seriously polluted all over the world.
Lake Baikal located in eastern Siberia is the largest and cleanest supply of freshwater on the planet. It has long been admired as the"Sacred Gem" and "Pearl of Siberia". It is said that Lake Baikal is the deepest lake on Earth and holds 20% of the world's freshwater supply, which is more than the amount of water of the Five Great Lakes in the North America combined. It is also said that humanity could survive at least for forty years solely on the water of Lake Baikal.
Lake Baikal is also known as the oldest lake on Earth and was considered to have been created about 25 million years ago. It contains 1500 endemic species, of which more than half cannot be found anywhere else in the world. In 1996, the United Nation declared Lake Baikal as a World Heritage Site.
R
ecently, I was notified that the water of this precious lake has become polluted. This is why we have decided to hold this year's Ceremony to Send Love and Gratitude to Water at Lake Baikal, so that the people of the world would pay attention to this precious water resource, and not take it for granted.We have chosen Olkhon Island, the biggest island of Lake Baikal, as the primary site for our ceremony. This island has long been known as a sacred place for Siberian shamans. There is a small cape called Shaman Rock near Khuzhir.
We invite you to join us by sending your own sincere prayer of Love and Gratitude to the water of Lake Baikal, and the waters of the world.
We at Ion Exchange would like to invite you to join us in this ceremony visit Dr. Emotos site to see the video and learn more by clicking HERE
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Butterfly Forecast For Central Iowa for Aug 1-15th 2008
Reprinted by Ion Exchange with permission. Forecast for Central Iowa August 1, 2008-August 15, 2008
Butterfly numbers and diversity are at their peak right now. Diversity will continue to be at a peak until about the middle of September. Numbers will remain high after that—possibly as late as the end of October depending on the weather. However, by that time the diversity will have crashed and only a few species will be represented.
Many of the butterflies you see at this time of the year are newly emerged, but some, particularly the larger butterflies, may be individuals who have lived for several weeks. If you have appropriate habitat you may see the same individual eastern tiger swallowtail or great spangled fritillary over several days. Butterflies can become quite raggedy over a period of time, but can still survive.
There can be some unexpected butterfly watching opportunities at this time of year. A few years back I went on a ride on the Boone and Scenic Valley Railroad (Boone, Iowa). The ride goes for several miles, and there are wooded stretches and areas with some prairie plants. I got great looks at lots of butterflies, especially eastern tiger swallowtails and giant swallowtails. The northwestern part of the route, near Fraser and Holst State Forest had very large populations of giant swallowtails.
Rides on bike paths can be quite good as well. You might need to keep the ID books at home and just concentrate on the ride, however.
If you happen to pass a hay field you might see clouds of butterflies—clouded and orange sulfurs in numbers much greater than you will see elsewhere. Puddles near a hay field may yield hundreds of these butterflies which all fly up at the same time.
Watch the white butterflies at this time of year. Cabbage whites are common, as are white forms of clouded and orange sulfurs. If you look closely, you can tell them apart quite easily—the forewings of cabbage whites coming to a point instead of being rounded, and lacking the black border. You may see a white butterfly that is clearly different from either—one that is very white with no border, but which has more dark spots on it than the cabbage white. That will be the checkered white, which is a migrant that comes in to the state late in the summer.
In normal years we would be seeing great numbers of little yellows about now. However, I have not seen any yet this year. There have been huge numbers of summer azures, however—many more than normal, and flying about 3 weeks after one would expect their peak.
The American snout is a distinctive butterfly with a long nose. It can form huge swarms in Texas, where certain forms of hackberry tree are found.
In Iowa it is found in smaller numbers. I usually see only a few individuals each year.
Cloudless sulfurs can sometimes be seen late in the summer. Once again, they are quite common in the south but not so common in Iowa. Cloudless sulfurs resemble the more common clouded and orange sulfurs but are quite a bit larger. Look for fiery skippers to be fairly numerous as well.
Some species are found here pretty much all summer but reach fairly high numbers late in the year. They include before mentioned clouded and orange sulfurs, eastern tailed-blues, pearly crescents, and silvery checkerspots.
Black swallowtails, painted ladies, red admirals and monarchs may be found in fairly high numbers in prairie and old-field areas, and hackberry and tawny emperors can be found in the woodlands.
Summer is flying by (in more ways than one). Make the time to enjoy the show.
Harlan Ratcliff
References:
Schlicht, Dennis, John C. Downey, and Jeffrey C. Nekola. 2007. The Butterflies of Iowa. The University of Iowa Press, Iowa City, IA.
Scott, James A. 1986. The Butterflies of North America. A Natural History and Field Guide. Stanford University Press, Stanford CA.
IA-BTRFLY: The Iowa Butterfly and Dragonfly list serve.
http://www.wisconsinbutterflies.org/ sightings page.
http://www.naba.org/ sightings page.
Ratcliff, Harlan: 2003-2007 Unpublished butterfly survey results.
Many of the butterflies you see at this time of the year are newly emerged, but some, particularly the larger butterflies, may be individuals who have lived for several weeks. If you have appropriate habitat you may see the same individual eastern tiger swallowtail or great spangled fritillary over several days. Butterflies can become quite raggedy over a period of time, but can still survive.
There can be some unexpected butterfly watching opportunities at this time of year. A few years back I went on a ride on the Boone and Scenic Valley Railroad (Boone, Iowa). The ride goes for several miles, and there are wooded stretches and areas with some prairie plants. I got great looks at lots of butterflies, especially eastern tiger swallowtails and giant swallowtails. The northwestern part of the route, near Fraser and Holst State Forest had very large populations of giant swallowtails.
Rides on bike paths can be quite good as well. You might need to keep the ID books at home and just concentrate on the ride, however.
If you happen to pass a hay field you might see clouds of butterflies—clouded and orange sulfurs in numbers much greater than you will see elsewhere. Puddles near a hay field may yield hundreds of these butterflies which all fly up at the same time.
Watch the white butterflies at this time of year. Cabbage whites are common, as are white forms of clouded and orange sulfurs. If you look closely, you can tell them apart quite easily—the forewings of cabbage whites coming to a point instead of being rounded, and lacking the black border. You may see a white butterfly that is clearly different from either—one that is very white with no border, but which has more dark spots on it than the cabbage white. That will be the checkered white, which is a migrant that comes in to the state late in the summer.
In normal years we would be seeing great numbers of little yellows about now. However, I have not seen any yet this year. There have been huge numbers of summer azures, however—many more than normal, and flying about 3 weeks after one would expect their peak.
The American snout is a distinctive butterfly with a long nose. It can form huge swarms in Texas, where certain forms of hackberry tree are found.
In Iowa it is found in smaller numbers. I usually see only a few individuals each year.
Cloudless sulfurs can sometimes be seen late in the summer. Once again, they are quite common in the south but not so common in Iowa. Cloudless sulfurs resemble the more common clouded and orange sulfurs but are quite a bit larger. Look for fiery skippers to be fairly numerous as well.
Some species are found here pretty much all summer but reach fairly high numbers late in the year. They include before mentioned clouded and orange sulfurs, eastern tailed-blues, pearly crescents, and silvery checkerspots.
Black swallowtails, painted ladies, red admirals and monarchs may be found in fairly high numbers in prairie and old-field areas, and hackberry and tawny emperors can be found in the woodlands.
Summer is flying by (in more ways than one). Make the time to enjoy the show.
Harlan Ratcliff
References:
Schlicht, Dennis, John C. Downey, and Jeffrey C. Nekola. 2007. The Butterflies of Iowa. The University of Iowa Press, Iowa City, IA.
Scott, James A. 1986. The Butterflies of North America. A Natural History and Field Guide. Stanford University Press, Stanford CA.
IA-BTRFLY: The Iowa Butterfly and Dragonfly list serve.
http://www.wisconsinbutterflies.org/ sightings page.
http://www.naba.org/ sightings page.
Ratcliff, Harlan: 2003-2007 Unpublished butterfly survey results.
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
The Dangers of Wild Parsnip
Its that time of year when all the beautiful native wildflowers are at their peak. However there are also a few nasty plants out there as well. One of them is Wild Parsnip and it can burn you like a severe sunburn with big blisters that last for quite some time. Your pets could be subject to the same burns on their noses and places that aren't as protected by hair. Go to Ion Exchange to see a short video and picture of this plant and its effects.
Have a great day!
Kay at Ion Exchange Inc.
Have a great day!
Kay at Ion Exchange Inc.
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