Houseplants serve a variety of functions within your living spaces. They add visual appeal to your home, cleanse your air and could be edible or even medicinal. Some plant species are harmful to your pets and can result in death in the event of their ingestion. Therefore, while choosing a houseplant for your home make sure that it won't be a risk to your pets.  Check here the top 10 poisonous household plants for pets and tips to save your pets from toxic plants.  How Plants Can poison Pets: -The cause of poisoning is: -Touching or eating leaves -Ingesting berries, blossoms, or roots -Contacting the skin with juices or sap -Eating soil -Drinking water from a plant tray. Read Benefits of Pets for Kids: Why Raising Children around Livestock? The 10 most poisonous houseplants for pets Sago Palm Scientific Name: Cycas revoluta; English Name: Sago Palm; Bengali Name: Moniraj Full Features: This beautiful plant is among the top choices for landscapers. It is a source of a toxin known as Cycasin that can cause liver problems. Sago palms are poisonous to dogs, cats and cattle. Toxins: Cycasin; Severity: Extremely High Key Symptoms: Vomiting, hemorrhagic gastroenteritis, bleeding, clotting disorder, liver damage, and even death. Cactus Scientific Name : Cactaceae; English Name: Cactus; Bengali Name: Foni Monosa Features: Cactus species are usually planted as ornamental houseplants. Most plants in this family are poisonous and could pose a danger for pets like dogs and cats because of their thorns and spikes. Toxins: Different species are prone to various harmful substances. Spikes pose a threat too. Severity: Moderate to High Key Symptoms: Inflammation in the face, injuries. Read Top 10 Bathroom Plants to grow in humid environment of shower Aloe Scientific Name: Aloe barbadensis miller; English Name: Aloe Vera; Bengali Name: Ghytokumari Feature:  Aloe vera is a variety of leaf succulents. It has huge medicinal benefits. But it is poisonous to dogs when they consume the plant. There are approximately 500 species that come in a variety of forms, including trees and sometimes vines. The geographic range of species in this category comprises those of the Arabian Peninsula, Africa, South Asia, and Madagascar. Toxins: Saponins; Severity: Mild to Moderate Key Symptoms: Vomiting or diarrhea, changing color of the urine. Calla Lily Scientific Name: Zantedeschia; English Name: Calla Lily; Bengali Name: Unknown Feature:  Calla Lilies are gorgeous. In the same way, they are poisonous plants for dogs and cats. If they are chewed on, symptoms of a clinical problem are evident immediately. Toxins: Calcium oxalates insoluble and unknown harmful alkaloids; Severity: Mild to Moderate Key Symptoms: Pain in the mouth, diarrhea, drooling, inability to eat, and chewing on the lips. Dieffenbachia Scientific Name: Dieffenbachia seguine; English Name: Dieffenbachia; Bengali Name: Not specified Features:  Also known as dumb cane, it is among the most simple to care for house plants to grow in your house, but be cautious when you have a pet or cat that plays. Biting or chewing on the plant may cause injury. Toxins: Insoluble calcium oxides and proteolytic enzyme; Severity: Moderate Key Symptoms: Irritation of the mucous membrane, extreme burning, irritation of the lips and mouth, excessive vomiting, drooling, and difficulty swallowing. Read Terrace Gardening: Tips, Tricks, and Guidelines for Beginners Desert Rose  Scientific Name: Adenium obesum; English Name: Desert Rose; Bengali Name: Unknown Features: It has a Succulent shrub with a smooth, thick trunk and gray-green stems. You can use it as an ornamental plant and plant it in pots. However, adenium is among the plants that are poisonous to dogs.

Who doesn’t want cleaner and better air in the bathroom? Plants can help with that. Bathroom plants have huge benefits; purify the air, bring greenery and nature into one of our more sterile rooms, eliminate bacteria and absorb extra moisture. Besides, house plants can help increase your vitality and give you a feeling of extra energy improving your mental health and giving you the perfection of a higher quality of life. Check here the 10 best houseplants that can live in a bathroom without windows Top 10 Houseplants to Place in Bathroom, Shower In this case, you need to make your choices narrower and should select the plants that are able to cope with both high humidity and low light levels. Some plants that might be a good choice for a windowless bathroom are as follow: Snake plant Snake plant or Mother-in-law's tongue which is formerly Sansevieria trifasciata is a popular houseplant with yellow-striped leaves and tiny pale green scented flowers.  English Name: Snake Plant Scientific name: Dracaena trifasciata Bengali Name: Not available Special Benefit: The snake plant has many health benefits but the special is that it can release oxygen and add moisture to the air and can help lessen the impact of airborne allergens like dust and dander. Thus, it helps to improve poor indoor air quality which has been linked to many health-related issues like allergies and asthma. Features: -Filter indoor air, even at night.  -Remove toxic pollutants.  -Mental health booster.  -Low maintenance and easy to care for.  -Effective against allergies. -Survive in high humidity and in low light.  Read Terrace Gardening: Tips, Tricks, and Guidelines for Beginners Boston fern They're great for big, bushy greenery but need room to grow. So, you need a  larger bathroom. English Name: Boston Fern or Sword Fern Bengali Name: Not Available Scientific name: Nephrolepis exaltata Special Benefit:  Boston fern with its mass of lush green foliage is thought to be one of the best air purifying houseplants. It helps to rid the home of harmful toxins and improves humidity as well by helping to restore moisture to the air naturally. Features: -Warm and wet environments are suitable for Boston Fern.  -Bostoniensis' has gracefully arching fronds. -The plants have thin runners called stolons which will root to form a new plant when they touch the ground.  -You can use small Boston ferns as accents in the planting of annual foliage plants. Read How to Live Minimalist Life: Benefits, Drawbacks of Minimalism Majesty or Parlour palm Majesty palm is an easy-care plant. It adds good looks to indoor and outdoor spaces.  English Name: Parlour Palm Bengali Name: Not Available Scientific Name: Ravenea rivularis Special Benefits: Its special benefit is that it will make your house look beautiful and it requires a very small amount of maintenance. Helps to keep your bathroom green and fresh. Features:  -Majesty Palms Like it Wet -They Don't Mind Shade -They Like Humidity - Can Reach 80 Feet -Majesty Palm is a Slow Grower. Read Stretching Small Space: Tips to create more room within a small apartment Spider plant  English Name: Spider Plant Bengali Name: Available Scientific Name: Chlorophytum comosum Special Benefits: -It is a very popular houseplant.  -They are suitable for bathrooms as they love moisture. -It cleans indoor air.  -Studies have shown that this plant absorbs chemicals including formaldehyde, xylene, benzene, and carbon monoxide in homes or offices and thus keeps the air clean and fresh. Its thick and fleshy roots can tolerate inconsistent watering. Features -The spider plant is a great and common houseplant. -It produces small white flowers.  -Helps clean indoor air.  -It is well suited to hanging containers. Read Home Shifting Checklist: Important things to do while moving to new house Pothos  Another name for golden pothos, money plant, or devil's ivy is a hardy indoor foliage plant. English Name: Money Plant  Scientific Name: Epipremnum aureum  Bengali Name: Unknown Special Benefits:  The main speciality of this plant is that it is easy to grow and actually thrives in low light and neglect. It helps to purify the air of formaldehyde, benzene and carbon monoxide and helps eliminate odours as well. Besides, it can also help alleviate eye irritation after long days of staring at screens. Features:   -It is an evergreen plant. Its leaves are thick, waxy, green and heart-shaped -It is like a hanging plant.  -It can climb on wild or cultivated plants grown outdoors and can reach enormous heights using tall trees as support. -It can absorb water easily, which makes them ideal for a bathroom.  Read Tips to Keep Home Cool in Summer Without AC Peace Lily  Also known as white sails, or spathe flower, is a very popular indoor house plant. English Name: Peace Lily  Scientific Name: Spathiphyllum wallisii Bengali Name: Not specified Special Benefits: It filters the indoor air increasing the levels of humidity and ultimately helping you breathe better. Besides, it aids in good sleep absorbing airborne mould spores that are common allergens. Most importantly, these plants bring calmness by alleviating feelings of stress in the mind and body. Features: -Peace lilies are athletic, easy-to-grow plants with glossy, dark green oval leaves. -The special thing is that the leaves of this plant rise directly from the soil. -These plants produce lightly fragrant white flowers that resemble calla lilies. - It has long-lasting, pure white flowers that will turn a pale green as they age. You can keep it easily in your shower as it loves moisture and prefers to be kept in low-light locations. Read Choose the Right Curtains for Your Home: The Ultimate Guide Aloe Vera Aloe vera, a medicinal plant is a shrubby, succulent and pea- green colour plant that grows mainly in the dry regions of Africa, Asia, Europe and America. English Name: Aloe Vera Scientific Name: Aloe barbadensis miller. Bengali Name: Unknown Special Benefits: Aloe vera gel is used to treat sunburn. Besides, it also provides other health benefits as it has antioxidant properties. Research has shown that aloe vera may benefit your skin, dental, oral, and digestive health. It can control blood sugar also. Features:  Aloe Vera has triangular, fleshy leaves. It also has yellow tubular flowers and fruits that contain numerous seeds. Each leaf consists of three layers. In the inner layer, you will find a gel that contains 99% water and the rest is made of glucomannans, amino acids, lipids, sterols and vitamins. It is suitable for bathroom shelves as it doesn't need much water.  Read Rooftop Gardening: Way to Release Stress and Promote Health during Pandemic Orchid Orchids are tropical plants that will cope with humidity.  English Name: Orchid Scientific Name: Orchidaceae Bengali Name: Unknown Special Benefits:  -An ornamental beauty. -Orchids can purify the Air.  -They may help us reduce stress.  -Orchids can produce a lovely scent.  -Orchid plants could aid with sleep. Features:  It has three petals. Its three sepals can also easily be mistaken as petals. Its waxy tube-like structure is known as a column. The column is the male and female organs of the plants. Orchids also have a single lip naming labellum. You can keep it in your larger, airier bathroom where the air can dry out.  Read Possible Food Crisis: Vegetable gardening at courtyards of 6.5 lakh houses planned Inch plant The inch plant known as Tradescantia zebrina is a great bathroom plant for adding colour with its purple leaves.  English Name: Inchplant Scientific Name:Tradescantia zebrina Bengali Name: Unknown Special Benefits: It has significant pharmacological activities such as anticancer, antioxidant, antibacterial, antitrypanosomal, antiarrhythmic and larvicidal activity against Anopheles benarrochi. Features: Tradescantia zebrina has attractive zebra-patterned leaves.  The upper surface shows purple new growth and green older growth parallel to the central axis. It has two broad silver-coloured stripes on the outer edges whereas the lower leaf surface presents a deep uniform magenta. Read How to manage wardrobes, closets to wear fresh smelling clothes everyday? Chinese Evergreen This is a great plant for the bathroom because of its hardiness. It even survives when you forget to water it. You can choose it easily if you like to travel a lot or you are a person who is forgetful. Most importantly, it is very adaptive. You can keep it low or indirect light and in bright spots also. Although it loves humidity, it doesn’t like quick temperature changes.  English Name: Chinese Evergreen Scientific Name: Aglaonema Bengali Name: Not specified Special Benefits This plant helps to improve the air quality of your indoor spaces by filtering indoor air pollutants and toxins. Besides,  this leafy indoor plant emits Oxygen and increases productivity both in living and working spaces. It enriches health also. Features:  It has shiny dark green, waxy, and lance-shaped leaves. The leaves have wavy margins on short stems. It can thrive in low light and low humidity. Read Bug-free Home: How to get rid of insects indoors

Health Minister Zahid Maleque said two liquid oxygen plants will be established in the country for more development of  the health sector. “One of the plants will be built in Manikganj while another in Northern part of the country,” said the minister. He said this at a programme at Colonel Malek Medical College and Hospital in Manikganj town on Saturday.  “During the Covid-19 pandemic we had a huge demand of oxygen and had to import it from India due to shortage in local supply. Currently 150 to 200 tonnes of oxygen are being produced in the country, he said.  Read: Bangladesh ready to tackle fresh surge in Covid cases: Health Minister Maleque said already three crore people in the country have received booster dose of vaccine against Covid-19 and a campaign is ongoing. “Yet we are not receiving much response from people regarding the booster shot,” he said. “Covid-linked deaths came down to zero due to vaccination but now every day two to five people are dying. We conducted a survey and found that now the unvaccinated ones are dying,” said the minister. He urged all to get vaccinated to keep themselves, their families and thus the country safe.  

Miscreants cut down 500 bottle gourd plants on one acre and five decimals of land at Nargun village in Haripur upazila of Thakurgaon district on Saturday. Md Biplab, son of Azizur Rahman, lodged a written complaint against five people with Haripur Police saying they have damaged his bottle gourd plants over land dispute and previous enmity, said Inspector Tajul Islam of the police station. The accused are Jewel, 38, GM, 35, Munna, 25, Shohagh, 40 and Badiuzzaman, 65 of Nargun village. READ: Miscreants cut down mango trees in Manirampur According to the complaint, Biplab and Jewel had been at loggerheads over the ownership of a piece of land. A case was filed in this regard which is under trial. As a sequel to the enmity, Jewel and his associates cut down the bottle gourd plant on the land, causing a loss of TK 9 lakh. Police are investigating the incident, said Inspector Tajul.

Richard Barclay opens a metal drawer in archives of the Smithsonian Natural History Museum containing fossils that are nearly 100 million years old. Despite their age, these rocks aren’t fragile. The geologist and botanist handles them with casual ease, placing one in his palm for closer examination. Embedded in the ancient rock is a triangular leaf with rounded upper lobes. This leaf fell off a tree around the time that T-rex and triceratops roamed prehistoric forests, but the plant is instantly recognizable. “You can tell this is ginkgo, it’s a unique shape,” said Barclay. “It hasn’t changed much in many millions of years.” What’s also special about ginkgo trees is that their fossils often preserve actual plant material, not simply a leaf’s impression. And that thin sheet of organic matter may be key to understanding the ancient climate system — and the possible future of our warming planet. But Barclay and his team first need to crack the plant’s code to read information contained in the ancient leaf. Read: China dinosaur footprint fossil named after Doraemon's "Nobita" “Ginkgo is a pretty unique time capsule,” said Peter Crane, a Yale University paleobotanist. As he wrote in “Ginkgo,” his book on the plant, “It is hard to imagine that these trees, now towering above cars and commuters, grew up with the dinosaurs and have come down to us almost unchanged for 200 million years.” If a tree fell in an ancient forest, what can it tell scientists today? “The reason scientists look back in the past is to understand what’s coming in the future,” said Kevin Anchukaitis, a climate researcher at the University of Arizona. “We want to understand how the planet has responded in the past to large-scale changes in climate — how ecosystems changed, how ocean chemistry and sea levels changed, how forests worked.” Of particular interest to scientists are “ hothouse ” periods when they believe carbon levels and temperatures were significantly higher than today. One such time occurred during the late Cretaceous period (66 million to 100 million years ago), the last era of the dinosaurs before a meteor slammed into Earth and most species went extinct. Learning more about hothouse climates also gives scientists valuable data to test the accuracy of climate models for projecting the future, says Kim Cobb, a climate scientist at Georgia Tech University. But climate information about the distant past is limited. Air bubbles trapped in ancient ice cores allow scientists to study ancient carbon dioxide levels, but those only go back about 800,000 years. That’s where the Smithsonian’s collection of ginkgo leaves come in. Down a warren of corridors, Barclay hops across millennia – as is only possible in a museum – to the 19th century, when the Industrial Revolution had started changing the climate. From a cabinet, he withdraws sheets of paper where Victorian-era scientists taped and tied ginkgo leaves plucked from botanical gardens of their time. Many specimens have labels written in beautiful cursive, including one dated Aug. 22, 1896. Read:120,000-year-old fossils in Israel link to human family tree The leaf shape is virtually identical to the fossil from around 100 million years ago, and to a modern leaf Barclay holds in his hand. But one key difference can be viewed with a microscope — how the leaf has responded to changing carbon in the air. Tiny pores on a leaf’s underside are arranged to take in carbon dioxide and respire water, allowing the plant to transform sunlight into energy. When there’s a lot of carbon in the air, the plant needs fewer pores to absorb the carbon it needs. When carbon levels drop, the leaves produce more pores to compensate. Today, scientists know the global average level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is about 410 parts per million – and Barclay knows what that makes the leaf look like. Thanks to the Victorian botanical sheets, he knows what ginkgo leaves looked like before humans had significantly transformed the planet’s atmosphere. Now he wants to know what pores in the fossilized ginkgo leaves can tell him about the atmosphere 100 million years ago. But first he needs a codebreaker, a translation sheet — sort of a Rosetta stone to decipher the handwriting of the ancient atmosphere. That’s why he’s running an experiment in a forest clearing in Maryland. One morning earlier this year, Barclay and project assistant Ben Lloyd tended rows of ginkgo trees within open-topped enclosures of plastic sheeting that expose them to rain, sunlight and changing seasons. “We are growing them this way so the plants experience natural cycles,” Barclay said. The researchers adjust the carbon dioxide pumped into each chamber, and an electronic monitor outside flashes the levels every five seconds. Read:Weird ‘living fossil’ fish lives 100 years, pregnant for 5 Some trees are growing at current carbon dioxide levels. Others are growing at significantly elevated levels, approximating levels in the distant past, or perhaps the future. “We’re looking for analogues — we need something to compare with,” said Barclay. If there’s a match between what the leaves in the experiment look like and what the fossil leaves look like, that will give researchers a rough guide to the ancient atmosphere. They also are studying what happens when trees grow in super-charged environments, and they found that more carbon dioxide makes them grow faster. But adds Barclay, “If plants grow very quickly, they are more likely to make mistakes and be more susceptible to damage. ... It’s like a race car driver that’s more likely to go off the rails at high speeds.”

Gardening is a great way to keep our body and mind fresh. Besides, it is also a popular way to pass our lazy time. But, for urban people, gardening might be a dream as there is not enough space. Still, some enthusiasts started to make a garden on their roof whether it has large or small space. Rooftop gardening is an old concept, but beginners may find it difficult to make a garden on the rooftop. So, understanding the idea and process is necessary before making up your mind to start a rooftop garden. Hence, we have focused on rooftop gardening tips, tricks, and guidelines for Beginners. Benefits of Gardening Gardening is not just about giving your home a good look. It is beneficial for your own physical and mental well-being. A good amount of physical exercise can keep your body fit. However, gardening can contribute to your physical exercise, which can eventually improve your mental health. And it is more useful during this COVID -19 pandemic.  You may need to spend hours to take care of your garden; hence it can burn your calories, and gardening is comparable to some sort of intense exercise. One hour of active gardening can burn about 330 calories from your body, and it increases your body’s metabolism. Therefore, your body’s immunity system gets boosted. Gardening is correlated with stress reduction and ultimately fights against depression and anxiety. In other words, it can be said that your body and mind will stay fresh. It is evident that we may face stress due to the current coronavirus pandemic; even the healthy person can get stressed too. So, gardening can help you out to divert your mind and get you to relieve yourself from stress. Read Terrace farming gains traction in cities Basic Guidelines of Terrace gardening for the Beginners Want to start rooftop gardening, but not sure how to start? Here we will provide you some basic guidelines for your ultimate rooftop gardening. Let’s go through the basic preparation first. Check the drainage system Although most of the roof has a good drainage system, some roof may block the water or does not have enough slope to pass the water. Since the rooftop garden requires more water than the regular garden, you may expect an overflow of the water. So, it is mandatory to check out the roof’s drainage system. If there is any problem with that, you will need to fix it before starting the garden.  Also read: 3 Ways To Live Eco-Friendly in Dhaka Soil The important thing is to grow your garden. For the novice gardener buying a balanced soil consisting of fertilizer is recommended. You can get by that from the nearby nursery. But the amount of needed soil depends on your garden size. So, it is necessary to know the pot or container you will use to plant your trees. Equipment Before starting the gardening process, you should collect some basic equipment such as gloves, hoses, water cans, rakes, trowels, and other tools. Apart from these, you may choose your own relevant tools too. Temperature Checking out your rooftop’s temperature is highly essential because, depending on that, you will need to buy plants. You will also need to check the roof’s position measuring the sun. And you cannot grow any kind of plant on your roof due to Bangladesh’s humid weather. In high humidity or tropical areas, plants need extra care. So, it would be better if you educate yourself about the sunlight on your roof.  Also read: Best Home and Office Shifting Services in Dhaka Water Though the water necessity depends on the plant, you are planning to grow. However, it is always better to have easy access to water on your roof so that you can water your garden whenever you need it. On the other hand, overwatering can hinder your plants. Educating yourself about the plants is highly recommended to know the needs of water. Grow you plant Now that you have everything ready, you are ready to grow your plants. Whether you want to grow the plants from seed or put want to grow flower trees, the raised beds or pots are necessary. So, get your required pot or raised beds and then fill the half portion with soil and then rope your desired tree and then fill the rest of the part. And then continue this step for other pots too. Gradually you will see your garden growing. Read IFAD supports smallholder farmers with nutritious homestead vegetable gardening kits Tips and Tricks for Rooftop Gardening Gardening is fun, but sometimes it can be difficult to manage if you don’t plan properly. Some tips and tricks can make your gardening life easier. Firstly, put your pots or raised bed in the appropriate places, depending on the plant’s characteristics. For example, you should put sun-loving plants in the open space, where they can get enough rays. And keep other plants under the shades. Secondly, watering the plants carefully. As we have mentioned earlier, overwatering can damage the root. As a result, your plant may die. However, there are some plants that need more water than others. So, make sure you know your plants well. Do not grow some plants that have a deep and aggressive root system. Thirdly, for the better growth of your plant, try to feed liquid fertilizer that contains high potassium and low nitrogen. The appropriate amount of potassium can increase the growth of flowers and fruits. For the rooftop garden, balancing while planting can ensure the overall growth of the plants. Make sure you maintain diversity when selecting the plants. A combination of large plants, small trees, shrubs, ground cover can balance your garden. Besides, it can be eye-soothing too.  Read Possible Food Crisis: Vegetable gardening at courtyards of 6.5 lakh houses planned Where to Buy Terrace Gardening Supplies Online? If you want to buy all the gardening stuffs such as seeds, fertilizers, plants, tools, etc., online, there are many websites that can get your job done. For example, Daraz, garder.com.bd, mygardenbd.com, bonayon.com, and aci-bd.com. Online Courses to Learn Gardening If you have no idea about gardening and want to get practical experience in gardening, you can take some online courses. If you have an international credit card, you can visit udemy.com, skillshare.com, or masterclass.com and enroll in some world-class gardening courses. For example, you can try Ron Finley’s gardening class on masterclass.com and Gardening 101 on skillshare.com.  Although there are not enough online courses available in Bangladesh for gardeners, you can try different channels to learn gardening. You can search on YouTube about gardening in Bangladesh. Besides, you may also visit oregonbd.org/online-course to get a complete idea of gardening. Read Rooftop Gardening: Way to Release Stress and Promote Health during Pandemic