Did you know?

March Forth and Do Something Day is a made-up holiday celebrated each year on March 4.

The holiday encourages people to do something new that enriches their own lives or the lives of people in their community.

March Fourth

The name of this unofficial holiday plays on the words, march fourth, which when spoken out loud sounds like march forth - an expression used to convey action and moving forward.

How to Celebrate?

March forth and do something.

Volunteer in your community.

Start something that you have always wanted to do but have never had the chance to.

You can read more here.   

 March 4, 2020 is ...

64th day of the year. There are then 302 days left in 2020.

10th Wednesday of 2020.

on the 10th week of 2020 (using US standard week number calculation).

74th day of Winter. There are 16 days left till Spring.

Birthstone for this day: Aquamarine, Bloodstone & Jade

This information came from here. 

This Day in Music

1967 - The Rolling Stones' Ruby Tuesday hits #1

1972 -Badfinger's Day After Day is certified gold

1976 - Hall & Oates, Rich Girl is recorded

1978 - In the Top 5 songs on this day, Dan Hill's, Sometimes When We Touch at #3 is the only song not written by the Bee Gees

This Day in Sports

1913 - New York Yankees are the 1st team to train outside the US in Bermuda

1967 - Worlds Ladies Figure Skating Champion in Vienna won by Peggy Fleming of the US

1968 - Joe Frazier TKOs Buster Mathis in 11 for heavyweight boxing title

1976 - San Francisco Giants are bought for $8 million by Bob Lurie & Bud Herseth

All the above came from here.

Daylight Saving Time will begin at 2:00 AM on Sunday, March 8

Don't forget to change your clock before going to sleep tonight! But what does it mean and why do we do it?

The terms “spring forward” and “fall back” are used to describe a practice of changing standard time with the intention of “saving” (as in, making better use of) natural light. During daylight savings time (DST), clocks are turned ahead one hour, so that the sun rises later in the morning and sets later in the evening. The change is reversed in autumn.

Originally enacted in the United States as a wartime conservation effort, observance of DST became federal law in 1918. (To dispel a common myth: It was not enacted for farmers—in fact, most farmers fought for its repeal.) While it was quickly repealed after the war ended, DST was observed nationally again during World War II. By 1966, some 100 million Americans were practicing some type of DST through their own local laws. In 1966, Congress acted to end the confusion and establish one consistent nationwide pattern. The Uniform Time Act of 1966 stated that DST would begin on the last Sunday of April and end on the last Sunday of October. (Any area that wanted to be exempt from DST could do so by passing a local ordinance. Hawaii and most of Arizona, for example, are exempt from DST.) By 2005, the Energy Policy Act established that DST begins each year on the second Sunday in March at 2:00am and that the changeover back to standard time (ST) occurs on the first Sunday in November at 2:00am.

You can read more here.

Fun Facts about Candy

• Fairy Floss was the original name of the cotton candy. It was invented by William Morrison.

• In the United States, National Cotton Candy Day is celebrated on November 7th.

• Americans over 18 years of age consume 65 percent of the candy which is produced each year.

• About 65 percent of American candy brands have introduced before more than 50 years.

• The Snickers candy bar, which was introduced in 1929 by Frank and Ethel Mars, was named after the family horse.

• The ancient Aztecs believed that chocolate was an aphrodisiac. Chocolate contains phenyl ethylamine (PEA), a natural substance that is said to stimulate the same reaction in the body as falling in love.

• During the 1849 Gold Rush, Dombringo Ghirardelli from Italy began making chocolate in San Francisco. His factory still stands at Ghirardelli Square.

• Daniel Peter and Henri Nestle created milk chocolate in 1875.

• In 1871, at the age of 19, Milton Hershey setup his confectionary shop in Philadelphia.

• Some candies, such as lollipops, candy canes, gummy bears, gum drops, licorice twist and sour balls are free of fat and cholesterol, making them a healthier treat than many people realize.

• 2.8 billion pounds of chocolate are consumed in America each year, which is over 11 pounds per person.

• The U.S. produce more chocolate than any other country in the world, but the Swiss consume the most, followed closely by the United Kingdom.

• Chocolate can be lethal to dogs. Chocolate's toxicity is caused by Theo bromine, an ingredient that stimulates the cardiac muscle and the central nervous system. For a 10-lb puppy about two ounces of milk chocolate can be poisonous.

• Sixty million chocolate Easter bunnies are produced each year.

• A lollipop, which was invented by George Smith in 1908, was named after Lolly Pop, a racing horse.

• White chocolate is classified as sugar confectionery instead of chocolate because it contains no cocoa solids.

• According to the Guinness Book of World Records, Franssons of Sweden made the world's largest lollipop weighted 4.759.1 pounds for a festival on July 27, 2003.

 You can find more candy facts here.

Interesting facts about candy

• Candy, also called sweets or lollies, is a confection that features sugar or other sweeteners as a principal ingredient.

• The word “candy” comes from ancient Indian Sanskrit. Khanda means “a piece of sugar.” Years later, the Arabic version moved one step closer with qandi. The Middle English word “candy” began to be used in the late 13th century.

• Before sugar came west, Egyptians used honey and made candy by adding figs, nuts, dates and spices.

• The first candy came to America in the early 18th century from Britain and France. Only a few of the early colonists were proficient in sugar work and were able to provide the sugary treats for the very wealthy.

• In 1847, the invention of the candy press made it possible to produce multiple shapes and sizes of candy at once.

• Rock candy was a happy accident of a Scottish hard candy maker. A Dutch man invented the first hard chocolate candy in 1844. The first chocolate candy bars were made by Joseph Fry in 1847 using bittersweet chocolate. Milk chocolate was first introduced in 1875 by Henry Nestle and Daniel Peter. Candies like peppermint and lemon drops became popular near the beginning of the 20th century.

You can read more here.

Gardening Facts and Tips

• The ladybug is a beneficial insect. They consume large numbers of aphids and scale bugs thus keeping them from chewing on your precious plants.

• The best time to water your plants is in the morning or at dusk. This not only protects your plants from burning but watering in the heat of the day also causes an increase in evaporation and thus your plants don’t get as much water as you think. It also saves water!

• When watering your plants try not to water the leaves. Water remaining on the leaves is a great way get and spread disease. To avoid this try placing the hose at the base of the plant.

• Variegated (different colored pieces of leaves, etc) plants are due to a mutation in the plant.

• Picking off flowers and vegetables actually increases the productivity of the plant.

• Thinner leaved plants tend to need more water than plants with thicker leaves.

• Mixing cinnamon in with your soil is a simple and easy fungicide.

• Control mildew buildup by diluting milk with water and spraying it on your plants.

• Less than 2 percent of insects are harmful.

You can read this here. 

 • A sunflower is not just one flower. Both the fuzzy brown center and the classic yellow petals are actually 1,000 – 2,000 individual flowers, held together on a single stalk.

• There are more microorganisms in one teaspoon of soil than there are people on earth. It's aliiiiive! OK, in all seriousness, that fact might make you itchy, but microbes are important for keeping your soil full of nutrients.

• Plants really do respond to sound. Talking to plants to help them grow is a well-known old wives' tale, but studies have shown vibration (like music, or perhaps even the sweet sound of your voice) can affect plant growth. Plus, the Myth Busters (in an admittedly not-so-scientific study), compared a silent greenhouse to one where they piped in a voice soundtrack, and found that plants in the latter grew more.

• Butterflies might be more attracted to your weeds than your flowers. Colorful blooms aren't the chief reason these insects love your garden – it's more about the fragrance and nectar. According to the Smithsonian Institute, new cultivars of popular flowers have been bred for enhanced color and size but have often lost their fragrance in the process. So everyday weeds, like dandelions and clovers, might actually be the most appealing things in your yard to butterflies (they hate pesticides, too). Taking care to choose heirloom flower seeds can get them to also fly your way.

• A little baking soda can help you grow sweeter tomatoes. A regular sprinkling of this kitchen staple into your plant's soil can help reduce acidity, which sweetens up your crop.

• Some of your favorite fruits are actually in the rose family. Apples, pears, peaches, cherries, raspberries, strawberries, and more are rosaceae, making them cousins to the long-stemmed Valentine's Day variety.

• The right orchid combination can smell like your favorite dessert. Did you know that the vanilla bean comes from a orchid varietal? And it's not the only sweet-smelling kind: "An oncidum hyrbrid called Sharry Baby smells like chocolate," says George Hatfield, president of the Santa Barbara Orchid Show. "It's 'baking cookie' aroma has made it a winner." And that's not all: The cymbidium Golden Elf smells lemony, and the phalaenopsis violacea has a cinnamon scent. "Just like you'd combine Jelly Belly beans to create new flavors, you can combine orchids to create a garden that smells like a dessert buffet," says Hatfield.

• You can change a hydrangea's color by altering the pH level of the soil. A more alkaline soil will result in pinker blooms, while more acidity will produce blue blooms. To coax your plant to the blue side, add more organic matter to your soil, like eggshells and coffee grounds (though the acidity in used coffee grounds can vary greatly, so you might try a high-acid fertilizer, too). The change won't happen overnight, but eventually you should succeed in manipulating your soil's pH level.

• Deer can jump eight feet high. They might require a running start to reach such heights, but a tiny fence often isn't enough to keep these garden nibblers away. Try a taller one, plant thorny or pungent plants as a natural barrier, or scare them off with lights or wind chimes.

• You don't need to be a dedicated composter to reap similar benefits. Call it cheating but applying used coffee grounds, eggshells, chopped-up banana peels, and other organic matter directly to your soil (no composting required) can offer plants nutrients as they decompose. For already-growing beds, scatter and bury the items within the first few inches of soil.

The above info came from here. 

 If you would like to read ‘What Your Favorite Flower Says About You’ you can read it here.