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Throughout December 2009, at least 60 world leaders are due to attend the Copenhagen climate summit to discuss climate change*. For individuals, this is an equally opportune moment to think about personal contributions towards climate change and how these could be reduced.

In your day-to-day life you may not even be aware of some of the detrimental effects of your choices and actions. Take the morning for example, do you step out of bed into a centrally heated bedroom, or do you grab your dressing gown and slippers to warm yourself up?

In your everyday life you may not even be aware of some of the damaging effects of your choices and actions. When you step out of bed do you do this into a centrally heated bedroom, or do you grab your dressing gown and slippers to keep toasty?

You might have already thought about your electricity and gas consumption, and even perhaps the business electricity you use. Some businesses even have dedicated Green Committees; if you work in an office you could suggest to your colleagues to turn off their computers and monitors when they’re not in use, and to turn off lights when they are not needed.

If you think you have the potential to become an energy warrior, there are a few facts you can use as your arsenal. At the office, computers and monitors can account for half the electricity wasted every day. Turning a PC off fully overnight and at weekends, could give savings of 63 a year; for an office of 50 computers, that equates to more than 3,100 per year**.

UK households spend 1.2 billion worth of electricity every year on refrigeration and freezing***, so by using your inner warrior at your home you can help to reduce this figure. If your freezer has over one centimeter of ice, take out your food and store it in a cold place while you defrost the freezer. Doing this will help the freezer to work more efficiently, which will end up being cheaper and more environmentally friendly.

*BBC News. (2009). Copenhagen climate summit: 60 world leaders to attend. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/8373551.stm

**Big Green Switch. (2009). Take part in an energy examination. http://www.biggreenswitch.co.uk/intheworkplace/energy-examination/article-1211347-detail/article.html

***Big Green Switch. (2009). Defrost your freezer regularly to keep it running at top performance. http://www.biggreenswitch.co.uk/aroundthehome/Defrost-freezer-regularly-running-performance/article-934908-detail/article.html

Philip Youngwood is a freelancer who writes on a range of subjects he is passionate about. This includes easy to follow tips to help consumers get the best deals and business electricity.

Pruning and spraying trees and shrubs can begin now that deciduous trees and shrubs have lost their leaves. Of course, spring-flowering shrubs such as lilac and forsythia should not be touched now; they should be pruned after they flower.

Although dormant oil sprays are usually not applied until early spring, they can actually be used on any sunny day during the winter when the temperature promises to stay above 40 for eight hours or more.

Transplanting – Fall transplanting can be continued as long as the soil can be worked easily. The later the planting is done, however, the more necessary it is to have a mulch over the roots.

If a tree is not too large, it is sometimes practical for the homeowner to move it with a frozen ball. Trench around the tree now so that frost can get deep into the ground. Don’t undercut the ball until you are ready to move the tree.

Caring for your lawn – Remember that heavy traffic on the lawn is damaging, even when the ground is frozen. There may be dead turf by spring.

Apply a turf fungicide now to areas which were troubled with snow mold last winter. Another way to discourage this disease is to keep leaves and grass clippings from collecting on the turf.

Propagating shrubs – As soon as the wood is hard, but before heavy freezing occurs, take hardwood cuttings of your shrubs. Store them in sand or slightly dampened sphagnum moss until spring.

Planting spring bulbs – If your nursery or garden center is still selling good sound spring-flowering bulbs such as daffodils and tulips, don’t be discouraged from buying them because you think the planting season is past. As long as the soil can be worked there’s still time to plant.

Storing garden tools – After cleaning the garden tools, lawn mower and hose, put them under cover for the winter. Wash out the sprayer and store it upside down with the top off.

Encouraging the birds to winter in Hie garden – Keep the birds around your garden if possible by providing food and water for them. Many winter birds pay their way by eating insects.

Protecting the garden for the winter – From now on protection for the roses is an absolute must just like ficus tree care. Hill up fresh soil around the base of each bush. Wait until after a sharp freeze to mulch the strawberries and perennials, or mice may move into the mulch.

Inspecting vegetables in storage – From time to time examine stored vegetables. Leafy vegetables such as cabbage and endive are prone to rot.

Sowing hardy annuals – All hardy annuals can be sown in the fall. In many parts of the Middle West fall sowing is the only way to produce good plants of such cool-weather annuals as Shirley poppies, larkspurs and calendulas. Just before the ground freezes for the winter, broadcast the seed on well-prepared soil. The seed will remain dormant until spring, then will start into growth long before the soil can be worked.

In times like these it is easy to see why so many people like yourself are interested in ficus tree care. Join us http://www.plant-care.com/ficus-tree-care-winter-leaf-loss.html. Get a totally unique version of this article from our article submission service