Millions of U.S. households display a Christmas tree each year during the holiday season. The Christmas tree is the most recognized symbol of the Christmas holiday, and putting it up and decorating it each year is a time honored family tradition. Unfort...

Most people have a basic understanding of what a magnet is, but don't really contemplate the many ways in which magnets can be used. Did you know that magnets play important roles in our everyday lives? Without magnet technology, our cell phones, comput...

While many historians attribute the first National Christmas Tree to President Calvin Coolidge in 1923, there was another, less known tree ceremony that occurred in Washington a decade earlier. On December 24, 1913 in the East Plaza of the U.S. Capitol, ...

Christmas is most decorated holiday in the United States. Unfortunately, this time of year is also when most decorating-related injuries occur. While we all enjoy holiday decorations, it's important to keep basic safety rules in mind. No one enjoys a C...

Almost all of us have, at one time or another, sent or received a Christmas card. These printed holiday greetings are a mainstay of the Christmas season in the United States and many other countries around the world. But did you ever stop to wonder how ...

Millions of people display Christmas trees in their homes each year, and many of those trees feature the same decorations, year after year: round glass ornaments, traditional lights, some tinsel, and a star or angel at the top. After a while, the traditi...

During the summer of 2007, a rash of mysterious burglaries occurred in the Dallas, Texas area. Residents of upscale apartment complexes would return home at the end of the day to find their doors unlocked and their apartments robbed. Even more puzzling,...

The history of the Christmas tree farming industry in the United States dates back to the year 1851, when an entrepreneurial farmer named Mark Carr hauled two sleds full of evergreen trees into New York City to sell them. As the story goes, he sold all t...

Since 1931, the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree has been lighting up the holidays each year for New York City residents and visitors. One of the most well known decorated Christmas trees in the United States, this tree has become an iconic symbol of th...

Traditionally, almost all coffee was shade grown. The coffee plant in its natural state isn't very tolerant of direct sunlight; thus most coffee plants grow best under the shade of a canopy of trees. In an ideal setting, the leaves from the overhanging ...

Evergreen wreaths at Christmas time are a familiar sight on doors, above fireplaces, and on homes. Wreaths have been in use for many hundreds of years, even before the birth of Christ. Many historians believe that the first wreaths date back to the Pers...

When we talk about the history of Christmas trees, there are really several issues to address. First, there is the association of the evergreen tree with Christianity. When and where did this begin? Next, how did the evergreen tree come to be associate...

A hurricane is a deadly type of tropical storm that frequently strikes Central America, the Caribbean, and the Southeastern coast line of the United States. Hurricanes cost millions (and sometimes billions) of dollars of damage to homes and businesses ea...

Wreaths are most often thought to be a Christmastime decoration. Around the holidays, many of us decorate our homes with evergreen wreaths with lights and red bows. Christmas wreaths are a traditional decoration that we're all accustomed to. However, m...

Most families have a collection of Christmas ornaments they display on their tree year after year. Often times, these ornaments are full of sentimental value. However, when you've been using the same ornaments for many years, they can also get a little ...