NEW PRODUCTS

Have you ever wished you could pop popcorn at your desk? Or, wanted to cook something in a hurry after a day of outdoor activities when camping? Or, needed to make a cup of coffee to take the chill off while watching the big game at the stadium? Toting along a microwave just didn’t seem like a viable option. Until now, that is.

Enter the iWavecube, a 10-inch cube that brings the convenience and benefits of microwave technology to your fingertips.

Not much bigger than the ubiquitous boombox of the mid-1970s, the compact iWavecube weighs just 6 pounds and has a handle that makes it extremely portable. Available in a range of colors, it makes an ideal addition to your home, office, dorm room or home on wheels. Just plug it in and you’ll be cooking in no time.

The iWavecube has an interactive digital display that includes a clock, along with electronic touch controls and a child lock feature.

And it does all that while helping the environment, too. Not only are microwaves a more efficient way to cook and heat things, the manufacturer, Icubed International of Cleveland, Ohio, says the iWavecube is 15 percent more energy efficient that most microwaves on the market.

It has a suggested retail price of about $130.

If having a personal microwave was not enough, the company plans to release an iToastcube later this year and an iFridgecube in 2009.

For more information, visit www.icubedllc.net

Spray helps gardeners grow healthier roses

A rose may be a rose, but one sprayed with Jaz Rose Spray might become a super rose.

New Biology recently launched a new plant-strengthening product to help gardeners grow healthier, better-performing roses.

The nontoxic spray improves roses’ natural resistance to disease and environmental stresses, such as drought, low temperatures and salt.

Jaz Rose Spray is not classified as a pesticide, nor is it simply a fertilizer. According to the manufacturer, the spray belongs in a third, plant-strengthening category.

Jaz Rose Spray contains jasmonate technology which taps into and strengthens a plant’s natural defense system. Jasmonates belong to a well-studied family of safe, natural plant molecules that, when sprayed on leaves, enhance plants’ innate resistance to common environmental stresses and diseases. Defenses include antioxidants, proteins, phenolics and structural components of plant cells.

In addition, roses treated with the spray had improved leaf and bloom quality. For example, natural leaf yellowing and senescence was lessened in treated roses compared to untreated roses. In terms of bloom benefits, bouquets picked from treated roses last longer than from untreated roses. The spray also promotes flowering throughout the growing season.

Nevada is one of the first states in which Jaz Rose Spray is available to gardeners. It can be purchased as a concentrate or ready-to-use formula online at www.jazsprays.com.

New Biology’s primary goal is to make growing plants more successful, inspiring and gratifying. The company strives to discover new science-based tools for simplifying plant-growing success by providing practical and safe solutions. Its founders and staff have knowledge of and backgrounds in horticulture and plant biochemistry.