Attractive enough to look almost like lanterns hanging in the yard, these glass wasp catchers work well too. No chemicals are needed. You fill the catcher with lemonade or sugar water and the wasps are lured in and trapped. Great when you are being pestered by wasps and have trouble eating outside without them descending on you. The glass traps come in three colors, green, aqua and orange or you can buy a set of three. They are 8 ½ “ high and weigh about 1lb so can hang from small trees and branches.

Costs $13 for one or $30 for set of three from Gaiam.com

Although we love nature, some yard-invading parts of it are less welcome. This sonic deterrent for gophers, moles and other burrowing creatures does no harm, but irritates them and encourages them to move home. It’s powered by a built-in solar panel.

The deterrent costs $17.95 from SmartHome.

Next time you’re headed out into the wilds (or the park) on a picnic, why not take along a hamper that’s 100% compostable? Tree- and petroleum-free in manufacture, everything in these party sets can be recycled and spread on the garden.

Party set pieces start at $5.00 from Gaiam.com

Camping need not necessarily mean leaving behind all the comforts of home. This 6-person tent includes a solar panel that provides battery power to run the tent’s built-in lighting. Here is a link to a previous post we made on another model of solar tents that was more comprehensive.

Available for $249.99 (Canadian) from Canadian Tire.

last week Congress passed — and President Obama signed into law — a bill giving Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar the authority to immediately rescind Bush administration regulations that eliminate essential protections for the polar bear under the Endangered Species Act. Under the bill, if Salazar doesn’t withdraw the Bush regulations within 60 days, the regulations stay in effect and the polar bear is deprived of the legal protections it needs to survive.

Secretary Salazar must act immediately, or we’ll lose this precious opportunity to instantly remedy one of Bush’s worst environmental attacks. Please sign the petition to Salazar and demand that he immediately rescind the Bush regulations harming the polar bear.

Please consider taking a moment to go to the Center for Biological Diversity save the polar bear site and sign their petition.