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		<title>A Gardeners Forum: Hardiness Zone Sitemap</title>
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			<title>Index</title>
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			<title>Sunset Zone Information</title>
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			<title>Alabama</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/1/alabama.html</link>
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				Alabama is a state in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama is the 30th largest by area and the 24thmost populous of the U.S. states. With a total of 1,500 miles 2,400 km of inland waterways, Alabama has among the most of any state.Alabama is nicknamed the Yellowhammer State, after the state bird. Alabama is also known as the Heart of Dixie and the Cotton State. The state tree is the longleaf pine, and the state flower is the camellia. Alabama's capital is Montgomery. The largest city by population is Birmingham, which has long been the most industrialized city the largest city by land area is Huntsville. The oldest city is Mobile, founded by French colonists in 1702 as the capital of French Louisiana.
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			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Alaska</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/2/alaska.html</link>
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				Alaska is a U.S. state in the northwest extremity of North America. The Canadian administrative divisions of British Columbia and Yukon border the state to the east, its most extreme western part is Attu Island, and it has a maritime border with Russia Chukotka Autonomous Okrug to the west across the Bering Strait. To the north are the Chukchi and Beaufort seas, the southern parts of the Arctic Ocean. The Pacific Ocean lies to the south and southwest. It is the largest state in the United States by area and the seventh largest subnational division in the world. In addition, it is the 3rd least populous and the most sparsely populated of the 50 United States nevertheless, it is by far the most populous territory located mostly north of the 60th parallel in North America its population  estimated at 738,432 by the United States Census Bureau in 2015  is more than quadruple the combined populations of Northern Canada and Greenland. Approximately half of Alaska's residents live within the Anchorage metropolitan area. Alaska's economy is dominated by the fishing, natural gas, and oil industries, resources which it has in abundance. Military bases and tourism are also a significant part of the economy.The United States purchased Alaska from the Russian Empire on March 30, 1867, for 7.2 million U.S. dollars at approximately two cents per acre 4.74km2. The area went through several administrative changes before becoming organized as a territory on May 11, 1912. It was admitted as the 49th state of the U.S. on January 3, 1959.
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			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Arizona</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/3/arizona.html</link>
			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Arkansas</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/4/arkansas.html</link>
			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>California</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/5/california.html</link>
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				California is a state in the Pacific Region of the United States. With 39.6 million residents, California is the most populous U.S. state and the thirdlargest by area. The state capital is Sacramento. The Greater Los Angeles Area and the San Francisco Bay Area are the nation's second and fifthmost populous urban regions, with 18.7 million and 8.8 million residents respectively. Los Angeles is California's most populous city, and the country's secondmost populous, after New York City. California also has the nation's most populous county, Los Angeles County, and its largest county by area, San Bernardino County. The City and County of San Francisco is both the country's secondmost densely populated major city and the fifthmost densely populated county.
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			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Colorado</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/6/colorado.html</link>
			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Connecticut</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/7/connecticut.html</link>
			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Delaware</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/8/delaware.html</link>
			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>District of Columbia</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/52/district-of-columbia.html</link>
			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Florida</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/9/florida.html</link>
			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Georgia</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/10/georgia.html</link>
			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Hawaii</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/11/hawaii.html</link>
			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Idaho</title>
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			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Illinois</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/13/illinois.html</link>
			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Indiana</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/14/indiana.html</link>
			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Iowa</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/15/iowa.html</link>
			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Kansas</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/16/kansas.html</link>
			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Kentucky</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/17/kentucky.html</link>
			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Louisiana</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/18/louisiana.html</link>
			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Maine</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/19/maine.html</link>
			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Maryland</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/20/maryland.html</link>
			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Massachusetts</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/21/massachusetts.html</link>
			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Michigan</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/22/michigan.html</link>
			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Minnesota</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/23/minnesota.html</link>
			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Mississippi</title>
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				Mississippi is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. Mississippi is the 32nd most extensive and 34th most populous of the 50 United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico and Louisiana to the south, and Arkansas and Louisiana to the west. The state's western boundary is largely defined by the Mississippi River. Jackson, with a population of approximately 175,000 people, is both the state's capital and largest city.The state is heavily forested outside the Mississippi Delta area, which is the area between the Mississippi and Yazoo rivers. Before the American Civil War, most development in the state was along river fronts, as the waterways were critical for transportation. Large gangs of slaves were used to work on cotton plantations. After the war, freedmen began to clear the bottom lands to the interior, in the process selling off timber and buying property. By the end of the 19th century, African Americans made up twothirds of the Delta's property owners, but timber and railroad companies acquired much of the land after the financial crisis, which occurred when blacks were facing increasing racial discrimination and disfranchisement in the state.
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			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Missouri</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/25/missouri.html</link>
			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Montana</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/26/montana.html</link>
			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Nebraska</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/27/nebraska.html</link>
			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Nevada</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/28/nevada.html</link>
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				Nevada is a state in the Western United States. It borders Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast and Utah to the east. Nevada is the 7th most extensive, the 34th most populous, but the 9th least densely populated of the U.S. states. Nearly threequarters of Nevada's people live in Clark County, which contains the Las VegasParadise metropolitan area where three of the state's four largest incorporated cities are located. Nevada's capital, however, is Carson City.Nevada is officially known as the Silver State because of the importance of silver to its history and economy. It is also known as the Battle Born State, because it achieved statehood during the Civil War the words Battle Born also appear on the state flag as the Sagebrush State, for the native plant of the same name and as the Sagehen State.Nevada is largely desert and semiarid, much of it within the Great Basin. Areas south of the Great Basin are within the Mojave Desert, while Lake Tahoe and the Sierra Nevada lie on the western edge. About 86 of the state's land is managed by various jurisdictions of the U.S. federal government, both civilian and military.
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			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>New Hampshire</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/29/new-hampshire.html</link>
			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>New Jersey</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/30/new-jersey.html</link>
			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>New Mexico</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/31/new-mexico.html</link>
			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>New York</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/32/new-york.html</link>
			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>North Carolina</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/33/north-carolina.html</link>
			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>North Dakota</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/34/north-dakota.html</link>
			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Ohio</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/35/ohio.html</link>
			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Oklahoma</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/36/oklahoma.html</link>
			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Oregon</title>
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				Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region on the West Coast of the United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary along Washington state, while the Snake River delineates much of its eastern boundary along Idaho. The parallel 42 north delineates the southern boundary with California and Nevada. Oregon is one of only three states of the contiguous United States to have a coastline on the Pacific Ocean.Oregon was inhabited by many indigenous tribes before Western traders, explorers, and settlers arrived. An autonomous government was formed in the Oregon Country in 1843 before the Oregon Territory was created in 1848. Oregon became the 33rd state on February 14, 1859. Today, at 98,000 square miles 250,000 km2, Oregon is the ninth largest and, with a population of 4 million, 27th most populous U.S. state. The capital, Salem, is the second most populous city in Oregon, with 164,549 residents. Portland, with 632,309 residents, is the most populous and ranks as the 26th most populous city in the United States. The Portland metropolitan area, which also includes the city of Vancouver, Washington, to the north, ranks the 23rd largest metro area in the nation, with a population of 2,389,228.Oregon is one of the most geographically diverse states in the U.S., marked by volcanoes, abundant bodies of water, dense evergreen and mixed forests, as well as high deserts and semiarid shrublands. At 11,249 feet 3,429 m, Mount Hood, a stratovolcano, is the state's highest point. Oregon's only national park, Crater Lake National Park, comprises the caldera surrounding Crater Lake, the deepest lake in the United States. The state is also home to the single largest organism in the world, Armillaria ostoyae, a fungus that runs beneath 2,200 acres 8.9 km2 of the Malheur National Forest.Because of its diverse landscapes and waterways, Oregon's economy is largely powered by various forms of agriculture, fishing, and hydroelectric power. Oregon is also the top timber producer of the contiguous United States, and the timber industry dominated the state's economy in the 20th century. Technology is another one of Oregon's major economic forces, beginning in the 1970s with the establishment of the Silicon Forest and the expansion of Tektronix and Intel. Sportswear company Nike, Inc., headquartered in Beaverton, is the state's largest public corporation with an annual revenue of 30.6 billion.
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			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Pennsylvania</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/38/pennsylvania.html</link>
			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Puerto Rico</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/51/puerto-rico.html</link>
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				Puerto Rico Spanish for Rich Port, officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico Spanish Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit. Free Associated State of Puerto Rico and briefly called Porto Rico, is an unincorporated territory of the United States located in the northeast Caribbean Sea, approximately 1,000 miles 1,600 km southeast of Miami, Florida.An archipelago among the Greater Antilles, Puerto Rico includes the main island of Puerto Rico and a number of smaller ones, such as Mona, Culebra, and Vieques. The capital and most populous city is San Juan. Its official languages are Spanish and English, though Spanish predominates. The island's population is approximately 3.4 million. Puerto Rico's history, tropical climate, natural scenery, traditional cuisine, and tax incentives make it a destination for travelers from around the world.Originally populated by the indigenous Tano people, the island was claimed in 1493 by Christopher Columbus for Spain during his second voyage. Later it endured invasion attempts from the French, Dutch, and British. Four centuries of Spanish colonial government influenced the island's cultural landscapes with waves of African slaves, Canarian, and Andalusian settlers. In the Spanish Empire, Puerto Rico played a secondary, but strategic role when compared to wealthier colonies like Peru and the mainland parts of New Spain. Spain's distant administrative control continued up to the end of the 19th century, helping to produce a distinctive creole Hispanic culture and language that combined elements from the Native Americans, Africans, and Iberians. In 1898, following the SpanishAmerican War, the United States acquired Puerto Rico under the terms of the Treaty of Paris. The treaty took effect on April 11, 1899.Puerto Ricans are by law citizens of the United States and may move freely between the island and the mainland. As it is not a state, Puerto Rico does not have a vote in the United States Congress, which governs the territory with full jurisdiction under the Puerto Rico Federal Relations Act of 1950. However, Puerto Rico does have one nonvoting member of the House called a Resident Commissioner. As residents of a U.S. territory, American citizens in Puerto Rico are disenfranchised at the national level and do not vote for president and vice president of the United States, and do not pay federal income tax on Puerto Rican income. Like other territories and the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico does not have U.S. senators. Congress approved a local constitution in 1952, allowing U.S. citizens on the territory to elect a governor. A 2012 referendum showed a majority 54 of those who voted disagreed with the present form of territorial status. A second question asking about a new model, had full statehood the preferred option among those who voted for a change of status, although a significant number of people did not answer the second question of the referendum. A fifth referendum was held on June 11, 2017, with Statehood and IndependenceFree Association initially as the only available choices. At the recommendation of the Department of Justice, an option for the current territorial status was added. The referendum showed an overwhelming support for statehood, with 97.18 voting for it, although the voter turnout had a historically low figure of only 22.99 of the registered voters casting their ballots.
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			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Rhode Island</title>
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			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>South Carolina</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/40/south-carolina.html</link>
			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>South Dakota</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/41/south-dakota.html</link>
			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Tennessee</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/42/tennessee.html</link>
			<description>
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				Tennessee is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th largest and the 16th most populous of the 50 United States. Tennessee is bordered by Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina to the east, Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi to the south, Arkansas to the west, and Missouri to the northwest. The Appalachian Mountains dominate the eastern part of the state, and the Mississippi River forms the state's western border. Nashville is the state's capital and largest city, with a population of 660,388. Tennessee's second largest city is Memphis, which has a population of 652,717.Tennessee's major industries include agriculture, manufacturing, and tourism. Poultry, soybeans, and cattle are the state's primary agricultural products, and major manufacturing exports include chemicals, transportation equipment, and electrical equipment. The Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the nation's most visited national park, is headquartered in the eastern part of the state, and a section of the Appalachian Trail roughly follows the TennesseeNorth Carolina border. Other major tourist attractions include the Tennessee Aquarium in Chattanooga Dollywood in Pigeon Forge Ripley's Aquarium of the Smokies and Ober Gatlinburg in Gatlinburg the Parthenon, the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, and Ryman Auditorium in Nashville the Jack Daniel's Distillery in Lynchburg Elvis Presley's Graceland residence and tomb, the Memphis Zoo, the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis and Bristol Motor Speedway in Bristol.
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			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Texas</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/43/texas.html</link>
			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
			<guid isPermaLink="true">https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/43/texas.html</guid>
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			<title>Utah</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/44/utah.html</link>
			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
			<guid isPermaLink="true">https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/44/utah.html</guid>
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			<title>Vermont</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/45/vermont.html</link>
			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
			<guid isPermaLink="true">https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/45/vermont.html</guid>
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			<title>Virginia</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/46/virginia.html</link>
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				Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Southeastern and MidAtlantic regions of the United States located between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. Virginia is nicknamed the Old Dominion due to its status as the first English colonial possession established in mainland North America and Mother of Presidents because eight U.S. presidents were born there, more than any other state. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth are shaped by the Blue Ridge Mountains and the Chesapeake Bay, which provide habitat for much of its flora and fauna. The capital of the Commonwealth is Richmond Virginia Beach is the most populous city, and Fairfax County is the most populous political subdivision. The Commonwealth's estimated population as of 2017 is over 8.4 million.The area's history begins with several indigenous groups, including the Powhatan. In 1607 the London Company established the Colony of Virginia as the first permanent New World English colony. Slave labor and the land acquired from displaced Native American tribes each played a significant role in the colony's early politics and plantation economy. Virginia was one of the 13 Colonies in the American Revolution. In the American Civil War, Virginia's Secession Convention resolved to join the Confederacy, and Virginia's First Wheeling Convention resolved to remain in the Union that led to the creation of West Virginia. Although the Commonwealth was under oneparty rule for nearly a century following Reconstruction, both major national parties are competitive in modern Virginia.The Virginia General Assembly is the oldest continuous lawmaking body in the New World. The state government was ranked most effective by the Pew Center on the States in both 2005 and 2008. It is unique in how it treats cities and counties equally, manages local roads, and prohibits its governors from serving consecutive terms. Virginia's economy has many sectors agriculture in the Shenandoah Valley federal agencies in Northern Virginia, including the headquarters of the U.S. Department of Defense and Central Intelligence Agency CIA and military facilities in Hampton Roads, the site of the region's main seaport.
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			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Washington</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/47/washington.html</link>
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				Washington, officially the State of Washington, is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. Named for George Washington, the first president of the United States, the state was made out of the western part of the Washington Territory, which was ceded by Britain in 1846 in accordance with the Oregon Treaty in the settlement of the Oregon boundary dispute. It was admitted to the Union as the 42nd state in 1889. Olympia is the state capital the state's largest city is Seattle. Washington is sometimes referred to as Washington State, to distinguish it from Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States, which is often shortened to Washington or just D.C.Washington is the 18th largest state, with an area of 71,362 square miles 184,827 km2, and the 13th most populous state, with more than 7.4 million people. Approximately 60 percent of Washington's residents live in the Seattle metropolitan area, the center of transportation, business, and industry along Puget Sound, an inlet of the Pacific Ocean consisting of numerous islands, deep fjords, and bays carved out by glaciers. The remainder of the state consists of deep temperate rainforests in the west mountain ranges in the west, central, northeast, and far southeast and a semiarid basin region in the east, central, and south, given over to intensive agriculture. Washington is the second most populous state on the West Coast and in the Western United States, after California. Mount Rainier, an active stratovolcano, is the state's highest elevation, at almost 14,411 feet 4,392 meters, and is the most topographically prominent mountain in the contiguous United States.
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			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
			<guid isPermaLink="true">https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/47/washington.html</guid>
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			<title>West Virginia</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/48/west-virginia.html</link>
			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
			<guid isPermaLink="true">https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/48/west-virginia.html</guid>
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			<title>Wisconsin</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/49/wisconsin.html</link>
			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
			<guid isPermaLink="true">https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/49/wisconsin.html</guid>
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			<title>Wyoming</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/50/wyoming.html</link>
			<pubDate>Thu, 08 May 2014 05:00:00 PDT</pubDate>
			<guid isPermaLink="true">https://agardenersforum.com/zone/view/50/wyoming.html</guid>
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			<title>Africa</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/region/9/africa.html</link>
			<description>
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				Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, being behind Asia in both categories. At about 30.3 million km2 11.7 million square miles including adjacent islands, it covers 6 of Earth's total surface area and 20 of its land area. With 1.2 billion people as of 2016, it accounts for about 16 of the world's human population. The continent is surrounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, the Isthmus of Suez and the Red Sea to the northeast, the Indian Ocean to the southeast and the Atlantic Ocean to the west. The continent includes Madagascar and various archipelagos. It contains 54 fully recognised sovereign states countries, nine territories and two de facto independent states with limited or no recognition. The majority of the continent and its countries are in the Northern Hemisphere, with a substantial portion and number of countries in the Southern Hemisphere.Africa's average population is the youngest amongst all the continents the median age in 2012 was 19.7, when the worldwide median age was 30.4. Algeria is Africa's largest country by area, and Nigeria is its largest by population. Africa, particularly central Eastern Africa, is widely accepted as the place of origin of humans and the Hominidae clade great apes, as evidenced by the discovery of the earliest hominids and their ancestors as well as later ones that have been dated to around 7 million years ago, including Sahelanthropus tchadensis, Australopithecus africanus, A. afarensis, Homo erectus, H. habilis and H. ergaster  the earliest Homo sapiens modern human, found in Ethiopia, date to circa 200,000 years ago. Africa straddles the equator and encompasses numerous climate areas it is the only continent to stretch from the northern temperate to southern temperate zones.Africa hosts a large diversity of ethnicities, cultures and languages. In the late 19th century, European countries colonized almost all of Africa most present states in Africa originated from a process of decolonization in the 20th century. African nations cooperate through the establishment of the African Union, which is headquartered in Addis Ababa.
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			<pubDate>Sun, 31 Mar 2019 13:15:41 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Asia</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/region/7/asia.html</link>
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				Asia is Earth's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the Eastern and Northern Hemispheres. It shares the continental landmass of Eurasia with the continent of Europe and the continental landmass of AfroEurasia with both Europe and Africa. Asia covers an area of 44,579,000 square kilometres 17,212,000 sq mi, about 30 of Earth's total land area and 8.7 of the Earth's total surface area. The continent, which has long been home to the majority of the human population, was the site of many of the first civilizations. Asia is notable for not only its overall large size and population, but also dense and large settlements, as well as vast barely populated regions. Its 4.5 billion people As of September 2018 constitute roughly 60 of the world's population.In general terms, Asia is bounded on the east by the Pacific Ocean, on the south by the Indian Ocean, and on the north by the Arctic Ocean. The border of Asia with Europe is a historical and cultural construct, as there is no clear physical and geographical separation between them. It is somewhat arbitrary and has moved since its first conception in classical antiquity. The division of Eurasia into two continents reflects EastWest cultural, linguistic, and ethnic differences, some of which vary on a spectrum rather than with a sharp dividing line. The most commonly accepted boundaries place Asia to the east of the Suez Canal separating it from Africa and to the east of the Turkish Straits, the Ural Mountains and Ural River, and to the south of the Caucasus Mountains and the Caspian and Black Seas, separating it from Europe.China and India alternated in being the largest economies in the world from 1 to 1800 CE. China was a major economic power and attracted many to the east, and for many the legendary wealth and prosperity of the ancient culture of India personified Asia, attracting European commerce, exploration and colonialism. The accidental discovery of a transAtlantic route from Europe to America by Columbus while in search for a route to India demonstrates this deep fascination. The Silk Road became the main EastWest trading route in the Asian hinterlands while the Straits of Malacca stood as a major sea route. Asia has exhibited economic dynamism particularly East Asia as well as robust population growth during the 20th century, but overall population growth has since fallen. Asia was the birthplace of most of the world's mainstream religions including Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism, Jainism, Sikhism, Zoroastrianism, as well as many other religions.
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			<pubDate>Mon, 07 Jan 2019 14:33:11 PST</pubDate>
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			<title>Baltic States</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/region/3/baltic-states.html</link>
			<description>
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				The Baltic states, also known as the Baltic countries, Baltic republics, Baltic nations or simply the Baltics Estonian Balti riigid, Baltimaad, Latvian Baltijas valstis, Lithuanian Baltijos valstybs, is a geopolitical term used for grouping the three sovereign states in Northern Europe on the eastern coast of the Baltic Sea Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. The term is not used in the context of cultural areas, national identity, or language. The three countries do not form an official union, but engage in intergovernmental and parliamentary cooperation.All three countries are members of the European Union, NATO and the eurozone. They are classified as highincome economies by the World Bank and maintain high Human Development Index. Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania are also members of the OECD.
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			<pubDate>Sun, 06 Jan 2019 17:59:10 PST</pubDate>
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			<title>Canada</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/region/1/canada.html</link>
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				Canada is a country in the northern part of North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic to the Pacific and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering 9.98 million square kilometres 3.85 million square miles, making it the world's secondlargest country by total area. Canada's southern border with the United States is the world's longest binational land border. Its capital is Ottawa, and its three largest metropolitan areas are Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver. As a whole, Canada is sparsely populated, the majority of its land area being dominated by forest and tundra. Consequently, its population is highly urbanized, with over 80 percent of its inhabitants concentrated in large and mediumsized cities, many near the southern border. Canada's climate varies widely across its vast area, ranging from arctic weather in the north, to hot summers in the southern regions, with four distinct seasons.Various indigenous peoples have inhabited what is now Canada for thousands of years prior to European colonization. Beginning in the 16th century, British and French expeditions explored, and later settled, along the Atlantic coast. As a consequence of various armed conflicts, France ceded nearly all of its colonies in North America in 1763. In 1867, with the union of three British North American colonies through Confederation, Canada was formed as a federal dominion of four provinces. This began an accretion of provinces and territories and a process of increasing autonomy from the United Kingdom. This widening autonomy was highlighted by the Statute of Westminster of 1931 and culminated in the Canada Act of 1982, which severed the vestiges of legal dependence on the British parliament, except for the power to amend its constitution.Canada is a federal parliamentary democracy and a constitutional monarchy, with Queen Elizabeth II being the head of state. The country is a realm within the Commonwealth of Nations, a member of the Francophonie and officially bilingual at the federal level. It ranks among the highest in international measurements of government transparency, civil liberties, quality of life, economic freedom, and education. It is one of the world's most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations, the product of largescale immigration from many other countries. Canada's long and complex relationship with the United States has had a significant impact on its economy and culture.
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			<pubDate>Sun, 06 Jan 2019 15:10:03 PST</pubDate>
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			<title>Central America</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/region/10/central-america.html</link>
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				Central America Spanish Amrica Central, pronounced, Centroamrica is located on the southern tip of North America, or is sometimes defined as a subcontinent of the Americas, bordered by Mexico to the north, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south. Central America consists of seven countries Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Panama. The combined population of Central America has been estimated to be 41,739,000 2009 estimate and 42,688,190 2012 estimate.Central America is a part of the Mesoamerican biodiversity hotspot, which extends from northern Guatemala through to central Panama. Due to the presence of several active geologic faults and the Central America Volcanic Arc, there is a great deal of seismic activity in the region. Volcanic eruptions and earthquakes occur frequently these natural disasters have resulted in the loss of many lives and much property.
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			<pubDate>Sun, 31 Mar 2019 14:32:58 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Europe</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/region/2/europe.html</link>
			<description>
			<![CDATA[
				Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west and the Mediterranean Sea to the south. It comprises the westernmost part of Eurasia.Since around 1850, Europe is most commonly considered to be separated from Asia by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas and the waterways of the Turkish Straits. Although the term continent implies physical geography, the land border is somewhat arbitrary and has been redefined several times since its first conception in classical antiquity. The division of Eurasia into two continents reflects EastWest cultural, linguistic and ethnic differences which vary on a spectrum rather than with a sharp dividing line. The geographic border also does not follow political boundaries, with Turkey, Russia and Kazakhstan being transcontinental countries. A strict application of the Caucasus Mountains boundary also places two comparatively small countries, Azerbaijan and Georgia, in both continents.Europe covers about 10,180,000 square kilometers 3,930,000 sq mi, or 2 of the Earth's surface 6.8 of land area. Politically, Europe is divided into about fifty sovereign states of which the Russian Federation is the largest and most populous, spanning 39 of the continent and comprising 15 of its population. Europe had a total population of about 741 million about 11 of the world population as of 2016. The European climate is largely affected by warm Atlantic currents that temper winters and summers on much of the continent, even at latitudes along which the climate in Asia and North America is severe. Further from the sea, seasonal differences are more noticeable than close to the coast.Europe, in particular ancient Greece, was the birthplace of Western civilization. The fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 AD and the subsequent Migration Period marked the end of ancient history and the beginning of the Middle Ages. Renaissance humanism, exploration, art and science led to the modern era. Since the Age of Discovery started by Portugal and Spain, Europe played a predominant role in global affairs. Between the 16th and 20th centuries, European powers controlled at various times the Americas, almost all of Africa and Oceania and the majority of Asia.
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			<pubDate>Tue, 08 Jan 2019 12:38:53 PST</pubDate>
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			<title>Mexico</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/region/11/mexico.html</link>
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				Mexico Spanish Mxico, officially the United Mexican States Spanish Estados Unidos Mexicanos, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean to the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea and to the east by the Gulf of Mexico. Covering almost 2,000,000 square kilometres 770,000 sq mi, the nation is the fifth largest country in the Americas by total area and the 13th largest independent state in the world. With an estimated population of over 120 million people, the country is the eleventh most populous state and the most populous Spanishspeaking state in the world, while being the second most populous nation in Latin America after Brazil. Mexico is a federation comprising 31 states and Mexico City, a special federal entity that is also the capital city and its most populous city. Other metropolises in the state include Guadalajara, Monterrey, Puebla, Toluca, Tijuana and Len.PreColumbian Mexico dates to about 8000 BC and is identified as one of five cradles of civilization and was home to many advanced Mesoamerican civilizations such as the Olmec, Toltec, Teotihuacan, Zapotec, Maya, and Aztec before first contact with Europeans. In 1521, the Spanish Empire conquered and colonized the territory from its politically powerful base in MexicoTenochtitlan part of Mexico City, which was administered as the viceroyalty of New Spain. Three centuries later, the territory became a nation state following its recognition in 1821 after the Mexican War of Independence. The postindependence period was tumultuous, characterized by economic inequality and many contrasting political changes. The MexicanAmerican War 18461848 led to a territorial cession of the extant northern territories to the United States. The Pastry War, the FrancoMexican War, a civil war, two empires, and the Porfiriato occurred in the 19th century. The Porfiriato was ended by the start of the Mexican Revolution in 1910, which culminated with the promulgation of the 1917 Constitution and the emergence of the country's current political system as a federal, democratic republic.
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			<pubDate>Sun, 31 Mar 2019 14:48:29 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Oceania</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/region/6/oceania.html</link>
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				Oceania is a geographic region comprising Australasia, Melanesia, Micronesia and Polynesia. Spanning the eastern and western hemispheres, Oceania covers an area of 8,525,989 square kilometres 3,291,903 sq mi and has a population of 40 million. Situated in the southeast of the AsiaPacific region, Oceania, when compared to continental regions, is the smallest in land area and the second smallest in population after Antarctica.The islands at the geographic extremes of Oceania are the Bonin Islands, a politically integral part of Japan Hawaii, a state of the United States Clipperton Island, a possession of France the Juan Fernndez Islands, belonging to Chile and the Campbell Islands, belonging to New Zealand. Oceania has a diverse mix of economies from the highly developed and globally competitive financial markets of Australia and New Zealand, which rank high in quality of life and human development index, to the much less developed economies that belong to countries such as of Kiribati and Tuvalu, while also including mediumsized economies of Pacific islands such as Palau, Fiji and Tonga. The largest and most populous country in Oceania is Australia, with Sydney being the largest city of both Oceania and Australia.The first settlers of Australia, New Guinea, and the large islands just to the east arrived between 50,000 and 30,000 years ago. Oceania was first explored by Europeans from the 16th century onward. Portuguese navigators, between 1512 and 1526, reached the Tanimbar Islands, some of the Caroline Islands and west Papua New Guinea. On his first voyage in the 18th century, James Cook, who later arrived at the highly developed Hawaiian Islands, went to Tahiti and followed the east coast of Australia for the first time. The Pacific front saw major action during the Second World War, mainly between Allied powers the United States and Australia, and Axis power Japan.The arrival of European settlers in subsequent centuries resulted in a significant alteration in the social and political landscape of Oceania. In more contemporary times there has been increasing discussion on national flags and a desire by some Oceanians to display their distinguishable and individualistic identity. The rock art of Australian Aborigines is the longest continuously practiced artistic tradition in the world. Puncak Jaya in Papua is often considered the highest peak in Oceania. Most Oceanian countries have a parliamentary representative democratic multiparty system, with tourism being a large source of income for the Pacific Islands nations.
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			<pubDate>Mon, 07 Jan 2019 14:29:15 PST</pubDate>
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			<title>Scandinavia</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/region/4/scandinavia.html</link>
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				Scandinavia is a region in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties. The term Scandinavia in local usage covers the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. The majority national languages of these three, belong to the Scandinavian dialect continuum, and are mutually intelligible North Germanic languages. In English usage, Scandinavia also sometimes refers to the Scandinavian Peninsula, or to the broader region including Finland and Iceland, which is always known locally as the Nordic countries.While part of the Nordic countries, the remote Norwegian islands of Svalbard and Jan Mayen are not in Scandinavia, nor is Greenland, a constituent country within the Kingdom of Denmark. The Faroe Islands are sometimes included.
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			<pubDate>Tue, 08 Jan 2019 12:30:49 PST</pubDate>
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			<title>South America</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/region/8/south-america.html</link>
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				South America is a continent in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It may also be considered a subcontinent of the Americas, which is how it is viewed in the Spanish and Portuguesespeaking regions of the Americas. The reference to South America instead of other regions like Latin America or the Southern Cone has increased in the last decades due to changing geopolitical dynamics in particular, the rise of Brazil.It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east by the Atlantic Ocean North America and the Caribbean Sea lie to the northwest. It includes twelve sovereign states Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname, Uruguay, and Venezuela, a part of France French Guiana, and a nonsovereign area the Falkland Islands, a British Overseas Territory though this is disputed by Argentina. In addition to this, the ABC islands of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Trinidad and Tobago, and Panama may also be considered part of South America.South America has an area of 17,840,000 square kilometers 6,890,000 sq mi. Its population as of 2016 has been estimated at more than 420 million. South America ranks fourth in area after Asia, Africa, and North America and fifth in population after Asia, Africa, Europe, and North America. Brazil is by far the most populous South American country, with more than half of the continent's population, followed by Colombia, Argentina, Venezuela and Peru. In recent decades Brazil has also concentrated half of the region's GDP and has become a first regional power.Most of the population lives near the continent's western or eastern coasts while the interior and the far south are sparsely populated. The geography of western South America is dominated by the Andes mountains in contrast, the eastern part contains both highland regions and vast lowlands where rivers such as the Amazon, Orinoco, and Paran flow. Most of the continent lies in the tropics.The continent's cultural and ethnic outlook has its origin with the interaction of indigenous peoples with European conquerors and immigrants and, more locally, with African slaves. Given a long history of colonialism, the overwhelming majority of South Americans speak Portuguese or Spanish, and societies and states reflect Western traditions.
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			<pubDate>Wed, 09 Jan 2019 18:41:57 PST</pubDate>
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			<title>Alberta</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/place/24/alberta.html</link>
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				Alberta is a western province of Canada. With an estimated population of 4,067,175 as of 2016 census, it is Canada's fourth most populous province and the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces. Its area is about 660,000 square kilometers 250,000 sq mi. Alberta and its neighbor Saskatchewan were districts of the Northwest Territories until they were established as provinces on September 1, 1905.Alberta is bounded by the provinces of British Columbia to the west and Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Territories to the north, and the U.S. state of Montana to the south. Alberta is one of three Canadian provinces and territories to border only a single U.S. state and one of only two landlocked provinces. It has a predominantly humid continental climate, with stark contrasts over a year but seasonal temperature average swings are smaller than in areas further east, due to winters being warmed by occasional chinook winds bringing sudden warming.Alberta's capital, Edmonton, is near the geographic center of the province and is the primary supply and service hub for Canada's crude oil, the Athabasca oil sands and other northern resource industries.About 290 km 180 mi south of the capital is Calgary, the largest city in Alberta. Calgary and Edmonton center Alberta's two census metropolitan areas, both of which have populations exceeding one million, while the province has 16 census agglomerations.Tourist destinations in the province include Banff, Canmore, Drumheller, Jasper, Sylvan Lake and Lake Louise.
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			<pubDate>Sun, 23 Sep 2018 12:18:03 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Australia</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/place/30/australia.html</link>
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				Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and numerous smaller islands. It is the largest country in Oceania and the world's sixthlargest country by total area. The neighbouring countries are Papua New Guinea, Indonesia and East Timor to the north the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu to the northeast and New Zealand to the southeast. The population of 25 million is highly urbanized and heavily concentrated on the eastern seaboard. Australia's capital is Canberra, and its largest city is Sydney. The country's other major metropolitan areas are Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide.Australia was inhabited by indigenous Australians for about 60,000 years before the first British settlement in the late 18th century. It is documented that Aborigines spoke languages that can be classified into about 250 groups. After the European exploration of the continent by Dutch explorers in 1606, who named it New Holland, Australia's eastern half was claimed by Great Britain in 1770 and initially settled through penal transportation to the colony of New South Wales from 26 January 1788, a date which became Australia's national day. The population grew steadily in subsequent decades, and by the 1850s most of the continent had been explored and an additional five selfgoverning crown colonies established. On 1 January 1901, the six colonies federated, forming the Commonwealth of Australia. Australia has since maintained a stable liberal democratic political system that functions as a federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy comprising six states and ten territories.
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			<pubDate>Mon, 07 Jan 2019 22:40:22 PST</pubDate>
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			<title>Brazil</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/place/34/brazil.html</link>
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				Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil Portuguese Repblica Federativa do Brasil, is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At 8.5 million square kilometers 3.2 million square miles and with over 208 million people, Brazil is the world's fifthlargest country by area and the fifth most populous. The capital is Braslia, and the most populated city is So Paulo. The federation is composed of the union of the 26 states, the Federal District, and the 5,570 municipalities. It is the largest country to have Portuguese as an official language and the only one in the Americas it is also one of the most multicultural and ethnically diverse nations, due to over a century of mass immigration from around the world.Bounded by the Atlantic Ocean on the east, Brazil has a coastline of 7,491 kilometers 4,655 mi. It borders all other South American countries except Ecuador and Chile and covers 47.3 of the continent's land area. Its Amazon River basin includes a vast tropical forest, home to diverse wildlife, a variety of ecological systems, and extensive natural resources spanning numerous protected habitats. This unique environmental heritage makes Brazil one of 17 megadiverse countries, and is the subject of significant global interest and debate regarding deforestation and environmental protection.Brazil was inhabited by numerous tribal nations prior to the landing in 1500 of explorer Pedro lvares Cabral, who claimed the area for the Portuguese Empire. Brazil remained a Portuguese colony until 1808, when the capital of the empire was transferred from Lisbon to Rio de Janeiro. In 1815, the colony was elevated to the rank of kingdom upon the formation of the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves. Independence was achieved in 1822 with the creation of the Empire of Brazil, a unitary state governed under a constitutional monarchy and a parliamentary system. The ratification of the first constitution in 1824 led to the formation of a bicameral legislature, now called the National Congress. The country became a presidential republic in 1889 following a military coup d'tat. An authoritarian military junta came to power in 1964 and ruled until 1985, after which civilian governance resumed. Brazil's current constitution, formulated in 1988, defines it as a democratic federal republic. Due to its rich culture and history, the country ranks thirteenth in the world by number of UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
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			<pubDate>Wed, 09 Jan 2019 20:21:06 PST</pubDate>
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			<title>British Columbia</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/place/21/british-columbia.html</link>
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				British Columbia is the westernmost province of Canada, located between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. With an estimated population of 4.8 million as of 2017, it is Canada's thirdmost populous province. The inhabitants of British Columbia make up more than 13 of the country's population, and the population density of the area is higher than the national average.The first British settlement in the area was Fort Victoria, established in 1843, which gave rise to the City of Victoria, at first the capital of the separate Colony of Vancouver Island. Subsequently, on the mainland, the Colony of British Columbia 18581866 was founded by Richard Clement Moody and the Royal Engineers, Columbia Detachment, in response to the Fraser Canyon Gold Rush. Moody was Chief Commissioner of Lands and Works for the Colony and the first LieutenantGovernor of British Columbia he was handpicked by the Colonial Office in London to transform British Columbia into the British Empire's bulwark in the farthest west, and to found a second England on the shores of the Pacific. Moody selected the site for and founded the original capital of British Columbia, New Westminster, established the Cariboo Road and Stanley Park, and designed the first version of the Coat of arms of British Columbia. Port Moody is named after him.In 1866, Vancouver Island became part of the colony of British Columbia, and Victoria became the united colony's capital. In 1871, British Columbia became the sixth province of Canada. Its Latin motto is Splendor sine occasu Splendour without Diminishment.The capital of British Columbia remains Victoria, the fifteenthlargest metropolitan region in Canada, named for the Queen who created the original European colonies. The largest city is Vancouver, the thirdlargest metropolitan area in Canada, the largest in Western Canada, and the secondlargest in the Pacific Northwest. In October 2013, British Columbia had an estimated population of 4,606,371 about 2.5 million of whom were in Greater Vancouver. The province is currently governed by the British Columbia New Democratic Party in a minority government supported by the Green Party of British Columbia, led by John Horgan, who became premier as a result of a noconfidence motion on June 29, 2017.British Columbia evolved from British possessions that were established in what is now British Columbia by 1871. First Nations, the original inhabitants of the land, have a history of at least 10,000 years in the area. Today there are few treaties and the question of Aboriginal Title, long ignored, has become a legal and political question of frequent debate as a result of recent court actions. Notably, the Tsilhqot'in Nation has established Aboriginal title to a portion of their territory, as a result of the recent Supreme Court of Canada decision.
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			<pubDate>Sun, 23 Sep 2018 13:50:32 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>China</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/place/31/china.html</link>
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				China, officially the People's Republic of China PRC, is a country in East Asia and the world's most populous country, with a population of around 1.404 billion. Covering approximately 9,600,000 square kilometers 3,700,000 sq mi, it is the third or fourth largest country by total area. Governed by the Communist Party of China, the state exercises jurisdiction over 22 provinces, five autonomous regions, four directcontrolled municipalities Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, and Chongqing, and the special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macau.China emerged as one of the world's earliest civilizations, in the fertile basin of the Yellow River in the North China Plain. For millennia, China's political system was based on hereditary monarchies, or dynasties, beginning with the semilegendary Xia dynasty in 21st century BCE. Since then, China has expanded, fractured, and reunified numerous times. In the 3rd century BCE, the Qin reunited core China and established the first Chinese empire. The succeeding Han dynasty, which ruled from 206 BC until 220 AD, saw some of the most advanced technology at that time, including papermaking and the compass, along with agricultural and medical improvements. The invention of gunpowder and movable type in the Tang dynasty 618907 and Northern Song 9601127 completed the Four Great Inventions. Tang culture spread widely in Asia, as the new Silk Route brought traders to as far as Mesopotamia and Horn of Africa. Dynastic rule ended in 1912 with the Xinhai Revolution, when a republic replaced the Qing dynasty. The Chinese Civil War resulted in a division of territory in 1949, when the Communist Party of China established the People's Republic of China, a unitary oneparty sovereign state on Mainland China, while the Kuomintangled government retreated to the island of Taiwan. The political status of Taiwan remains disputed.Since the introduction of economic reforms in 1978, China's economy has been one of the world's fastestgrowing with annual growth rates consistently above 6 percent. As of 2016, it is the world's secondlargest economy by nominal GDP and largest by purchasing power parity PPP. China is also the world's largest exporter and secondlargest importer of goods. China is a recognized nuclear weapons state and has the world's largest standing army and secondlargest defense budget. The PRC is a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council as it replaced the ROC in 1971, as well as an active global partner of ASEAN Plus mechanism. China is also a leading member of numerous formal and informal multilateral organizations, including the Shanghai Cooperation Organization SCO, WTO, APEC, BRICS, the BCIM, and the G20. In recent times, China has been widely characterized as a global superpower.
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			<pubDate>Mon, 07 Jan 2019 15:03:21 PST</pubDate>
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			<title>Czech Republic</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/place/27/czech-republic.html</link>
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				The Czech Republic, known alternatively by its shortform name, Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west, Austria to the south, Slovakia to the east and Poland to the northeast. The Czech Republic covers an area of 78,866 square kilometres 30,450 sq mi with a mostly temperate continental climate and oceanic climate. It is a unitary parliamentary republic, with 10.6 million inhabitants its capital and largest city is Prague, with 1.3 million residents. Other major cities are Brno, Ostrava and Pilsen. The Czech Republic is a member of the European Union EU, NATO, the OECD, the United Nations, the OSCE, and the Council of Europe.
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			<pubDate>Sun, 23 Sep 2018 12:11:17 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Denmark</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/place/13/denmark.html</link>
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				Denmark, officially the Kingdom of Denmark, is a sovereign state in Europe. Denmark is a Nordic country and the southernmost of the Scandinavian nations, it is southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. The Kingdom of Denmark also comprises two autonomous constituent countries in the North Atlantic Ocean the Faroe Islands and Greenland. Denmark proper consists of a peninsula, Jutland, and an archipelago of 443 named islands, with the largest being Zealand, Funen and the North Jutlandic Island. The islands are characterized by flat, arable land and sandy coasts, low elevation and a temperate climate. Denmark has a total area of 42,924 km2 16,573 sq mi, land area of 42,394 km2 16,368 sq mi, and the total area including Greenland and the Faroe Islands is 2,210,579 km2 853,509 sq mi, and a population of 5,781,190 as of 2018.
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			<pubDate>Mon, 17 Dec 2018 13:11:56 PST</pubDate>
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			<title>Eastern Europe</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/place/2/eastern-europe.html</link>
			<pubDate>Mon, 16 Jan 2017 18:43:36 PST</pubDate>
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			<title>Estonia</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/place/10/estonia.html</link>
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				Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia Estonian Eesti Vabariik, is a sovereign state in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland with Finland on the other side, to the west by the Baltic Sea with Sweden to the west Scandinavia to the far west and north, to the south by Latvia 343 km, and to the east by Lake Peipus and Russia 338.6 km. The territory of Estonia consists of a mainland and 2,222 islands in the Baltic Sea, covering a total area of 45,227 km2 17,462 sq mi, water 2,839 km2 1,096 sq mi, land area 42,388 km2 16,366 sq mi, and is influenced by a humid continental climate. The official language of the country, Estonian, is the second most spoken Finnic language.The territory of Estonia has been inhabited since at least 9,000 B.C. Ancient Estonians were some of the last European pagans to be Christianized, following the Livonian Crusade in the 13th century. After centuries of successive rule by Germans, Danes, Swedes, Poles and Russians, a distinct Estonian national identity began to emerge the 19th and early 20th centuries. This culminated in independence from the Russian Empire in 1918 after a brief War of Independence at the end of World War I. Initially democratic, Estonia was governed by authoritarian rule since 1934 during the Era of Silence and the Great Depression.Since independence, Estonia has been a democratic unitary parliamentary republic divided into fifteen counties. Its capital and largest city is Tallinn. Estonian citizens are provided with universal health care, free education, and the longestpaid maternity leave in the OECD.
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			<pubDate>Mon, 17 Dec 2018 13:08:54 PST</pubDate>
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			<title>Finland</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/place/35/finland.html</link>
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				Finland Finnish Suomi Swedish Finland, officially the Republic of Finland Finnish Suomen tasavalta, Swedish Republiken Finland is a country in Northern Europe bordering the Baltic Sea, Gulf of Bothnia, and Gulf of Finland, between Norway to the north, Sweden to the northwest, and Russia to the east. Finland is a Nordic country and is situated in the geographical region of Fennoscandia. The capital and largest city is Helsinki. Other major cities are Espoo, Vantaa, Tampere, Oulu and Turku.Finland's population is 5.52 million 2018, and the majority of the population is concentrated in the southern region. 88.7 of the population is Finnish and speaks Finnish, a Uralic language unrelated to the Scandinavian languages next come the FinlandSwedes 5.3. Finland is the eighthlargest country in Europe and the most sparsely populated country in the European Union. The sovereign state is a parliamentary republic with a central government based in the capital city of Helsinki, local governments in 311 municipalities, and one autonomous region, the land Islands. Over 1.4 million people live in the Greater Helsinki metropolitan area, which produces one third of the country's GDP.Finland was inhabited when the last ice age ended, approximately 9000 BCE. The first settlers left behind artifacts that present characteristics shared with those found in Estonia, Russia, and Norway. The earliest people were huntergatherers, using stone tools. The first pottery appeared in 5200 BCE, when the Comb Ceramic culture was introduced. The arrival of the Corded Ware culture in southern coastal Finland between 3000 and 2500 BCE may have coincided with the start of agriculture. The Bronze Age and Iron Age were characterized by extensive contacts with other cultures in the Fennoscandian and Baltic regions and the sedentary farming inhabitation increased towards the end of Iron Age. At the time Finland had three main cultural areas  Southwest Finland, Tavastia and Karelia  as reflected in contemporary jewellery.
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			<pubDate>Mon, 25 Mar 2019 20:40:58 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>France</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/place/28/france.html</link>
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				France, officially the French Republic French Rpublique franaise, is a country whose territory consists of metropolitan France in Western Europe and several overseas regions and territories. The metropolitan area of France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean. It is bordered by Belgium, Luxembourg and Germany to the northeast, Switzerland and Italy to the east, and Andorra and Spain to the south. The overseas territories include French Guiana in South America and several islands in the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian oceans. The country's 18 integral regions five of which are situated overseas span a combined area of 643,801 square kilometres 248,573 sq mi and a total population of 67.3 million as of October 2018. France, a sovereign state, is a unitary semipresidential republic with its capital in Paris, the country's largest city and main cultural and commercial centre. Other major urban areas include Lyon, Marseille, Toulouse, Bordeaux, Lille and Nice.
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			<pubDate>Mon, 07 Jan 2019 14:00:37 PST</pubDate>
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			<title>Germany</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/place/37/germany.html</link>
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				Germany German Deutschland, officially the Federal Republic of Germany German Bundesrepublik Deutschland, is a country in Central and Western Europe, lying between the Baltic and North Seas to the north, and the Alps to the south. It borders Denmark to the north, Poland and the Czech Republic to the east, Austria and Switzerland to the south, France to the southwest, and Luxembourg, Belgium and the Netherlands to the west.Germany includes 16 constituent states, covers an area of 357,386 square kilometers 137,988 sq mi, and has a largely temperate seasonal climate. With 83 million inhabitants, it is the second most populous state of Europe after Russia, the most populous state lying entirely in Europe, as well as the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is a very decentralized country. Its capital and largest metropolis is Berlin, while Frankfurt serves as its financial capital and has the country's busiest airport. Germany's largest urban area is the Ruhr, with its main centers of Dortmund and Essen. The country's other major cities are Hamburg, Munich, Cologne, Stuttgart, Dsseldorf, Leipzig, Dresden, Bremen, Hannover, and Nuremberg.Various Germanic tribes have inhabited the northern parts of modern Germany since classical antiquity. A region named Germania was documented before 100 AD. During the Migration Period, the Germanic tribes expanded southward. Beginning in the 10th century, German territories formed a central part of the Holy Roman Empire. During the 16th century, northern German regions became the center of the Protestant Reformation. After the collapse of the Holy Roman Empire, the German Confederation was formed in 1815. The German revolutions of 184849 resulted in the Frankfurt Parliament establishing major democratic rights.
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			<pubDate>Sun, 31 Mar 2019 13:03:56 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>India</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/place/32/india.html</link>
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				India, also known as the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the seventhlargest country by area, the secondmost populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the southwest, and the Bay of Bengal on the southeast, it shares land borders with Pakistan to the west China, Nepal, and Bhutan to the northeast and Bangladesh and Myanmar to the east. In the Indian Ocean, India is in the vicinity of Sri Lanka and the Maldives, while its Andaman and Nicobar Islands share a maritime border with Thailand and Indonesia.The Indian subcontinent was home to the urban Indus Valley Civilisation of the 3rd millennium BCE. In the following millennium, the oldest scriptures associated with Hinduism began to be composed. Social stratification, based on caste, emerged in the first millennium BCE, and Buddhism and Jainism arose. Early political consolidations took place under the Maurya and Gupta empires the later peninsular Middle Kingdoms influenced cultures as far as Southeast Asia. In the medieval era, Judaism, Zoroastrianism, Christianity, and Islam arrived, and Sikhism emerged, all adding to the region's diverse culture. Much of the north fell to the Delhi Sultanate the south was united under the Vijayanagara Empire. The economy expanded in the 17th century in the Mughal Empire. In the mid18th century, the subcontinent came under British East India Company rule, and in the mid19th under British crown rule. A nationalist movement emerged in the late 19th century, which later, under Mahatma Gandhi, was noted for nonviolent resistance and led to India's independence in 1947.
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			<pubDate>Tue, 08 Jan 2019 15:26:34 PST</pubDate>
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			<title>Ireland</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/place/8/ireland.html</link>
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				Ireland is an island in the North Atlantic. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, and St George's Channel. Ireland is the secondlargest island of the British Isles, the thirdlargest in Europe, and the twentiethlargest on Earth.Politically, Ireland is divided between the Republic of Ireland officially named Ireland, which covers fivesixths of the island, and Northern Ireland, which is part of the United Kingdom. In 2011, the population of Ireland was about 6.6 million, ranking it the secondmost populous island in Europe after Great Britain. Just under 4.8 million live in the Republic of Ireland and just over 1.8 million live in Northern Ireland.The island's geography comprises relatively lowlying mountains surrounding a central plain, with several navigable rivers extending inland. Its lush vegetation is a product of its mild but changeable climate which is free of extremes in temperature. It was covered by thick woodlands until the Middle Ages. As of 2013, the amount of land that is wooded in Ireland is about 11 of the total, compared with a European average of 35. There are twentysix extant mammal species native to Ireland. The Irish climate is influenced by the Atlantic Ocean and thus very moderate, and winters are milder than expected for such a northerly area, although summers are cooler than those in Continental Europe. Rainfall and cloud cover are abundant.The earliest evidence of human presence in Ireland is dated at 10,500 BCE 12,500 years ago. Gaelic Ireland had emerged by the 1st century AD. The island was Christianized from the 5th century onward. Following the 12th century Norman invasion, England claimed sovereignty. However, English rule did not extend over the whole island until the 16th17th century Tudor conquest, which led to colonization by settlers from Britain. In the 1690s, a system of Protestant English rule was designed to materially disadvantage the Catholic majority and Protestant dissenters, and was extended during the 18th century. With the Acts of Union in 1801, Ireland became a part of the United Kingdom. A war of independence in the early 20th century was followed by the partition of the island, creating the Irish Free State, which became increasingly sovereign over the following decades, and Northern Ireland, which remained a part of the United Kingdom. Northern Ireland saw much civil unrest from the late 1960s until the 1990s. This subsided following a political agreement in 1998. In 1973 the Republic of Ireland joined the European Economic Community while the United Kingdom, and Northern Ireland, as part of it, did the same.Irish culture has had a significant influence on other cultures, especially in the fields of literature. Alongside mainstream Western culture, a strong indigenous culture exists, as expressed through Gaelic games, Irish music and the Irish language. The island's culture shares many features with that of Great Britain, including the English language, and sports such as association football, rugby, horse racing, and golf.
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			<pubDate>Sun, 23 Sep 2018 11:58:58 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Italy</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/place/29/italy.html</link>
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				Italy Italian Italia, officially the Italian Republic Italian Repubblica Italiana, is a country in Europe. Located in the heart of the Mediterranean Sea, Italy shares open land borders with France, Switzerland, Austria, Slovenia, San Marino, and Vatican City. Italy covers an area of 301,340 km2 116,350 sq mi and has a largely temperate seasonal and Mediterranean climate. With around 61 million inhabitants, it is the fourthmost populous EU member state and the most populous country in Southern Europe.Due to its central geographic location in Europe and the Mediterranean, Italy has historically been home to a myriad of peoples and cultures. In addition to the various ancient Italian tribes and Italic peoples dispersed throughout the Italian Peninsula and insular Italy, beginning from the classical era, Phoenicians, Carthaginians and Greeks established settlements in the south of Italy, with Etruscans and Celts inhabiting the centre and the north of Italy respectively. The Italic tribe known as the Latins formed the Roman Kingdom in the 8th century BC, which eventually became a republic that conquered and assimilated its neighbours. In the first century BC, the Roman Empire emerged as the dominant power in the Mediterranean Basin and became the leading cultural, political and religious centre of Western civilisation. The legacy of the Roman Empire is widespread and can be observed in the global distribution of civilian law, republican governments, Christianity and the Latin script.
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			<pubDate>Mon, 07 Jan 2019 14:00:20 PST</pubDate>
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			<title>Latvia</title>
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				Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia Latvian Latvijas Republika, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. Since its independence, Latvia has been referred to as one of the Baltic states. It is bordered by Estonia in the northern region, Lithuania in the southern, to the east is Russia, and Belarus to the southeast, as well as sharing a maritime border with Sweden to the west. Latvia has 1,957,200 inhabitants and a territory of 64,589 km2 24,938 sq mi. The country has a temperate seasonal climate.Despite foreign rule from the 13th to 20th centuries, the Latvian nation maintained its identity throughout the generations via the language and musical traditions. However, as a consequence of centuries of Russian rule 17101918 and later Soviet occupation, Latvia is home to a large number of ethnic Russians 26.9 in Latvia, some of whom 14.1 of Latvian residents have not gained citizenship, leaving them with no citizenship at all. Until World War II, Latvia also had significant minorities of ethnic Germans and Jews. Latvia is historically predominantly Lutheran Protestant, except for the Latgale region in the southeast, which has historically been predominantly Roman Catholic. The Russian population are largely Eastern Orthodox Christians.
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			<pubDate>Sun, 23 Sep 2018 11:59:49 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Lithuania</title>
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				Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania Lithuanian Lietuvos Respublika, is a country in the Baltic region of northerneastern Europe. Since its independence, Lithuania has been referred to as one of the Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, to the east of Sweden and Denmark. It is bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, Poland to the south, and Kaliningrad Oblast a Russian exclave to the southwest. Lithuania has an estimated population of 2.8 million people as of 2017, and its capital and largest city is Vilnius. Other major cities are Kaunas and Klaipda. Lithuanians are a Baltic people. The official language, Lithuanian, along with Latvian, is one of only two living languages in the Baltic branch of the IndoEuropean language family.For centuries, the southeastern shores of the Baltic Sea were inhabited by various Baltic tribes. In the 1230s, the Lithuanian lands were united by Mindaugas, the King of Lithuania, and the first unified Lithuanian state, the Kingdom of Lithuania, was created on 6 July 1253. During the 14th century, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania was the largest country in Europe presentday Lithuania, Belarus, Ukraine, and parts of Poland and Russia were the territories of the Grand Duchy. With the Lublin Union of 1569, Lithuania and Poland formed a voluntary twostate union, the PolishLithuanian Commonwealth. The Commonwealth lasted more than two centuries, until neighbouring countries systematically dismantled it from 1772 to 1795, with the Russian Empire annexing most of Lithuania's territory.
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			<pubDate>Sun, 23 Sep 2018 12:00:37 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Manitoba</title>
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			<description>
			<![CDATA[
				Manitoba is a province at the longitudinal center of Canada. It is often considered one of the three prairie provinces with Alberta and Saskatchewan and is Canada's fifthmost populous province with its estimated 1.3 million people. Manitoba covers 649,950 square kilometres 250,900 sq mi with a widely varied landscape, stretching from the northern oceanic coastline to the southern border with the United States. The province is bordered by the provinces of Ontario to the east and Saskatchewan to the west, the territories of Nunavut to the north, and Northwest Territories to the northwest, and the US states of North Dakota and Minnesota to the south.Aboriginal peoples have inhabited what is now Manitoba for thousands of years. In the late 17th century, fur traders arrived on two major river systems, what is now called the Nelson in northern Manitoba and in the southeast along the Winnipeg River system. A Royal Charter in 1670 granted all the lands draining into Hudson's Bay to the British company and they administered trade in what was then called Rupert's Land. During the next 200 years, communities continued to grow and evolve, with a significant settlement of Michif in what is now Winnipeg. The assertion of MEacutetis identity and selfrule culminated in negotiations for the creation of the province of Manitoba. There are many factors that led to an armed uprising of the MEacutetis people against the Government of Canada, a conflict known as the Red River Rebellion aka Resistance. The resolution of the assertion of the right to representation led to the Parliament of Canada passing the Manitoba Act in 1870 that created the province.
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			<pubDate>Sun, 23 Sep 2018 13:45:32 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>New Brunswick</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/place/19/new-brunswick.html</link>
			<description>
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				New Brunswick French NouveauBrunswick is one of four Atlantic provinces on the east coast of Canada.The indigenous inhabitants of the land at the time of European colonization were the Mi'kmaq, the Maliseet, and the Passamaquoddy peoples, aligned politically within the Wabanaki Confederacy, many of whom still reside in the area.
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			<pubDate>Thu, 19 Jan 2017 00:24:04 PST</pubDate>
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			<title>New Zealand</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/place/36/new-zealand.html</link>
			<description>
			<![CDATA[
				New Zealand Mori Aotearoa is a sovereign island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. The country geographically comprises two main landmasses  the North Island Te IkaaMui, and the South Island Te Waipounamu  and around 600 smaller islands. New Zealand is situated some 2,000 kilometres 1,200 mi east of Australia across the Tasman Sea and roughly 1,000 kilometres 600 mi south of the Pacific island areas of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga. Because of its remoteness, it was one of the last lands to be settled by humans. During its long period of isolation, New Zealand developed a distinct biodiversity of animal, fungal, and plant life. The country's varied topography and its sharp mountain peaks, such as the Southern Alps, owe much to the tectonic uplift of land and volcanic eruptions. New Zealand's capital city is Wellington, while its most populous city is Auckland.Sometime between 1250 and 1300, Polynesians settled in the islands that later were named New Zealand and developed a distinctive Mori culture. In 1642, Dutch explorer Abel Tasman became the first European to sight New Zealand. In 1840, representatives of the United Kingdom and Mori chiefs signed the Treaty of Waitangi, which declared British sovereignty over the islands. In 1841, New Zealand became a colony within the British Empire and in 1907 it became a dominion it gained full statutory independence in 1947 and the British monarch remained the head of state. Today, the majority of New Zealand's population of 4.9 million is of European descent the indigenous Mori are the largest minority, followed by Asians and Pacific Islanders. Reflecting this, New Zealand's culture is mainly derived from Mori and early British settlers, with recent broadening arising from increased immigration. The official languages are English, Mori, and NZ Sign Language, with English being very dominant.
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			<pubDate>Sun, 31 Mar 2019 12:53:52 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>Newfoundland and Labrador</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/place/25/newfoundland-and-labrador.html</link>
			<description>
			<![CDATA[
				Newfoundland and Labrador French TerreNeuveetLabrador Montagnais Akamassiss Newfoundland Irish Talamh an isc agus Labradar is the most easterly province of Canada. Situated in the country's Atlantic region, it comprises the island of Newfoundland and mainland Labrador to the northwest, with a combined area of 405,212 square kilometres 156,500 sq mi. In 2013, the province's population was estimated at 526,702. About 92 of the province's population lives on the island of Newfoundland and its neighbouring smaller islands, of whom more than half live on the Avalon Peninsula.The province is Canada's most linguistically homogeneous, with 97.6 of residents reporting English Newfoundland English as their mother tongue in the 2006 census. Historically, Newfoundland was also home to unique varieties of French and Irish, as well as the extinct Beothuk language. In Labrador, the indigenous languages Innuaimun and Inuktitut are also spoken.Newfoundland and Labrador's capital and largest city, St. John's, is Canada's 20thlargest census metropolitan area and is home to almost 40 percent of the province's population. St. John's is the seat of government, home to the House of Assembly of Newfoundland and Labrador and to the highest court in the jurisdiction, the Newfoundland and Labrador Court of Appeal.
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			<pubDate>Thu, 19 Jan 2017 23:40:33 PST</pubDate>
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			<title>Norway</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/place/14/norway.html</link>
			<description>
			<![CDATA[
				Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northwestern Europe whose core territory comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula the remote island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard are also part of the Kingdom of Norway. The Antarctic Peter I Island and the subAntarctic Bouvet Island are dependent territories and thus not considered part of the kingdom. Norway also lays claim to a section of Antarctica known as Queen Maud Land.
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			<pubDate>Mon, 17 Dec 2018 13:10:25 PST</pubDate>
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			<title>Nova Scotia</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/place/18/nova-scotia.html</link>
			<description>
			<![CDATA[
				Nova Scotia Latin for New Scotland French Nouvellecosse Scottish Gaelic Alba Nuadh is one of Canada's three Maritime Provinces, and one of the four provinces that form Atlantic Canada. Its provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the secondsmallest of Canada's ten provinces, with an area of 55,284 square kilometres 21,300 sq mi, including Cape Breton and another 3,800 coastal islands. As of 2016, the population was 923,598. Nova Scotia is Canada's secondmostdensely populated province, after Prince Edward Island, with 17.4 inhabitants per square kilometre 45sq mi.
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			<pubDate>Tue, 08 Jan 2019 13:44:48 PST</pubDate>
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			<title>Ontario</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/place/16/ontario.html</link>
			<description>
			<![CDATA[
				Ontario is one of the 13 provinces and territories of Canada and is located in eastcentral Canada. It is Canada's most populous province accounting for 38.3 percent of the country's population, and is the secondlargest province in total area. Ontario is fourthlargest in total area when the territories of the Northwest Territories and Nunavut are included. It is home to the nation's capital city, Ottawa, and the nation's most populous city, Toronto, which is also Ontario's provincial capital.Ontario is bordered by the province of Manitoba to the west, Hudson Bay and James Bay to the north, and Quebec to the east and northeast, and to the south by the U.S. states of from west to east Minnesota, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New York. Almost all of Ontario's 2,700 km 1,678 mi border with the United States follows inland waterways from the west at Lake of the Woods, eastward along the major rivers and lakes of the Great LakesSaint Lawrence River drainage system. These are the Rainy River, the Pigeon River, Lake Superior, the St. Marys River, Lake Huron, the St. Clair River, Lake St. Clair, the Detroit River, Lake Erie, the Niagara River, Lake Ontario and along the St. Lawrence River from Kingston, Ontario, to the Quebec boundary just east of Cornwall, Ontario. There is only about 1 km 0.6 mi of land border made up of portages including Height of Land Portage on the Minnesota border.Ontario is sometimes conceptually divided into two regions, Northern Ontario and Southern Ontario. The great majority of Ontario's population and arable land is in the south. In contrast, the larger, northern part of Ontario is sparsely populated with cold winters and heavy forestation.
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			<pubDate>Tue, 08 Jan 2019 13:28:38 PST</pubDate>
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			<title>Poland</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/place/26/poland.html</link>
			<description>
			<![CDATA[
				Poland Polish Polska, officially the Republic of Poland Polish Rzeczpospolita Polska, is a country located in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative subdivisions, covering an area of 312,696 square kilometres 120,733 sq mi, and has a largely temperate seasonal climate. With a population of approximately 38.5 million people, Poland is the sixth most populous member state of the European Union. Poland's capital and largest metropolis is Warsaw. Other major cities include Krakw, d, Wrocaw, Pozna, Gdask and Szczecin.Poland is bordered by the Baltic Sea, Russian Kaliningrad Oblast and Lithuania to the north, Belarus and Ukraine to the east, Slovakia and Czech Republic to the south and Germany to the west.The establishment of the Polish state can be traced back to A.D. 966, when Mieszko I, ruler of the realm coextensive with the territory of presentday Poland, converted to Christianity. The Kingdom of Poland was founded in 1025, and in 1569 it cemented its longstanding political association with the Grand Duchy of Lithuania by signing the Union of Lublin. This union formed the PolishLithuanian Commonwealth, one of the largest about 1 million km2 and most populous countries of 16th and 17thcentury Europe, with a uniquely liberal political system which adopted Europe's first written national constitution, the Constitution of 3 May 1791.
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			<pubDate>Tue, 08 Jan 2019 13:58:38 PST</pubDate>
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			<title>Portugal</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/place/9/portugal.html</link>
			<description>
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				Portugal Portuguese putual, officially the Portuguese Republic Portuguese Repblica Portuguesa, is a country located mostly on the Iberian Peninsula in southwestern Europe. It is the westernmost sovereign state of mainland Europe. It is bordered to the west and south by the Atlantic Ocean and to the north and east by Spain. Its territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of the Azores and Madeira, both autonomous regions with their own regional governments.Portugal is the oldest state on the Iberian Peninsula and one of the oldest in Europe, its territory having been continuously settled, invaded and fought over since prehistoric times. The PreCelts, Celts, Carthaginians and Romans were followed by the invasions of the Visigoths and Suebi Germanic peoples.Portugal as a country was established during the Christian Reconquista against the Moors who had invaded the Iberian Peninsula in 711 AD. Despite attempts at independence since its foundation as a county in 868, only after the Battle of So Mamede in 1128, where Portuguese forces led by Afonso Henriques defeated forces led by his mother, Teresa, the County of Portugal affirmed its sovereignty and Afonso styled himself Prince of Portugal. He would later be proclaimed King of Portugal at the Battle of Ourique in 1139 and was recognized as such, by neighboring kingdoms, on the Treaty of Zamora, in 1143.
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			<pubDate>Mon, 17 Dec 2018 13:16:51 PST</pubDate>
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			<title>Prince Edward Island</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/place/22/prince-edward-island.html</link>
			<description>
			<![CDATA[
				Prince Edward Island PEI or P.E.I. French leduPrincedouard is a province of Canada consisting of the island of the same name, and several much smaller islands. Prince Edward Island is one of the three Maritime Provinces and is the smallest province in both land area and population, but the most densely populated. It is part of the traditional lands of the Mi'kmaq, and became a British colony in the 1700s and was federated into Canada as a province in 1873. Its capital is Charlottetown. According to the 2016 census, the province of Prince Edward Island has 142,907 residents.PEI is located about 200 kilometers 120 miles north of Halifax, Nova Scotia, and 600 kilometers 370 miles east of Quebec City. It consists of the main island and 231 minor islands. Altogether, the entire province has a land area of 5,686.03 km2 2,195.39 sq mi. The main island is 5,620 km2 2,170 sq mi in size, slightly larger than the U.S. state of Delaware. It is the 104thlargest island in the world and Canada's 23rdlargest island.
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			<pubDate>Thu, 19 Jan 2017 14:57:27 PST</pubDate>
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			<title>Quebec</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/place/17/quebec.html</link>
			<description>
			<![CDATA[
				Quebec French Qubec is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is bordered to the west by the province of Ontario and the bodies of water James Bay and Hudson Bay to the north by Hudson Strait and Ungava Bay to the east by the Gulf of Saint Lawrence and the province of Newfoundland and Labrador and to the south by the province of New Brunswick and the U.S. states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, and New York. It also shares maritime borders with Nunavut, Prince Edward Island, and Nova Scotia. Quebec is Canada's largest province by area and its secondlargest administrative division only the territory of Nunavut is larger. It is historically and politically considered to be part of Central Canada with Ontario.Quebec is the secondmost populous province of Canada, after Ontario. It is the only one to have a predominantly Frenchspeaking population, with French as the sole provincial official language. Most inhabitants live in urban areas near the Saint Lawrence River between Montreal and Quebec City, the capital. Approximately half of Quebec residents live in the Greater Montreal Area, including the Island of Montreal. Englishspeaking communities and Englishlanguage institutions are concentrated in the west of the island of Montreal but are also significantly present in the Outaouais, Eastern Townships, and Gasp regions. The NordduQubec region, occupying the northern half of the province, is sparsely populated and inhabited primarily by Aboriginal peoples. The climate around the major cities is fourseasons continental with cold and snowy winters combined with warm to hot humid summers, but farther north long winter seasons dominate and as a result the northern areas of the province are marked by tundra conditions. Even in central Quebec, at comparatively southerly latitudes, winters are severe in inland areas.
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			<pubDate>Tue, 08 Jan 2019 14:13:52 PST</pubDate>
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			<title>Russia</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/place/3/russia.html</link>
			<description>
			<![CDATA[
				Russia Russian , tr. Rossiya, or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country located in Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. Covering an area of 17,125,200 square kilometres 6,612,100 sq mi, it is the largest country in the world by area, spanning more than oneeighth of the Earth's inhabited land area, stretching eleven time zones, and bordering 16 sovereign nations. The territory of Russia extends from the Baltic Sea in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east, and from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Black Sea and the Caucasus in the south. With 146.7 million inhabitants living in the country's 85 federal subjects, Russia is the most populous nation in Europe and the ninthmost populous nation in the world. Russia's capital and largest city is Moscow other major urban areas include Saint Petersburg, Novosibirsk, Yekaterinburg, Nizhny Novgorod, Kazan and Chelyabinsk.The East Slavs emerged as a recognisable group in Europe between the 3rd and 8th centuries AD. The medieval state of Rus' arose in the 9th century. In 988 it adopted Orthodox Christianity from the Byzantine Empire, beginning the synthesis of Byzantine and Slavic cultures that defined Russian culture for the next millennium. Rus' ultimately disintegrated into a number of smaller states, until it was finally reunified by the Grand Duchy of Moscow in the 15th century. By the 18th century, the nation had greatly expanded through conquest, annexation, and exploration to become the Russian Empire, which became a major European power, and the thirdlargest empire in history, stretching from Norway on the west to Canada on the east. Following the Russian Revolution, the Russian SFSR became the largest and leading constituent of the Soviet Union, the world's first constitutionally socialist state. The Soviet Union played a decisive role in the Allied victory in World War II, and emerged as a recognised superpower and rival to the United States during the Cold War. The Soviet era saw some of the most significant technological achievements of the 20th century, including the world's first humanmade satellite and the launching of the first humans in space. Following the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, the Russian SFSR reconstituted itself as the Russian Federation and is recognised as the continuing legal personality and a successor of the USSR.Since 1993, Russia is governed as a federal semipresidential republic. Vladimir Putin has dominated Russia's political system since 2000, serving as either president or prime minister. His government has been accused by nongovernmental organisations of numerous human rights abuses, authoritarianism and corruption. In response, Putin has argued that Westernstyle liberalism is obsolete in Russia, while maintaining that the country is still a democratic nation.The Russian economy ranks as the fifthlargest in Europe, the eleventhlargest in the world by nominal GDP and the fifthlargest by PPP. Russia's extensive mineral and energy resources are the largest such reserves in the world, making it one of the leading producers of oil and natural gas globally. The country is one of the five recognised nuclear weapons states and possesses the largest stockpile of nuclear warheads. Russia is a major great power, as well as a regional power, and has been characterised as a potential superpower. The Russian Armed Forces have been ranked as the world's second most powerful, and the most powerful in Europe. Russia hosts the world's ninthgreatest number of UNESCO World Heritage Sites, at 29, and is among the world's most popular tourist destinations. It is a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council and an active global partner of ASEAN, as well as a member of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation SCO, the G20, the Council of Europe, the AsiaPacific Economic Cooperation APEC, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe OSCE, the International Investment Bank IIB and the World Trade Organization WTO, as well as being the leading member of the Commonwealth of Independent States CIS, the Collective Security Treaty Organization CSTO and a member of the Eurasian Economic Union EAEU.
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			<pubDate>Tue, 08 Jan 2019 13:09:51 PST</pubDate>
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			<title>Saskatchewan</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/place/23/saskatchewan.html</link>
			<description>
			<![CDATA[
				Saskatchewan is a prairie and boreal province in western Canada, the only province without natural borders. It has an area of 651,900 square kilometers 251,700 sq mi, nearly 10 percent of which 59,366 square kilometers 22,900 sq mi is fresh water, composed mostly of rivers, reservoirs, and the province's 100,000 lakes.Saskatchewan is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North Dakota. As of late 2017, Saskatchewan's population was estimated at 1,163,925. Residents primarily live in the southern prairie half of the province, while the northern boreal half is mostly forested and sparsely populated. Of the total population, roughly half live in the province's largest city Saskatoon, or the provincial capital Regina. Other notable cities include Prince Albert, Moose Jaw, Yorkton, Swift Current, North Battleford, Melfort, and the border city Lloydminster partially within Alberta.Saskatchewan is a landlocked province with large distances to moderating bodies of waters. As a result, its climate is extremely continental, rendering severe winters throughout the province. Southern areas have very warm or hot summers. Midale and Yellow Grass near the U.S. border are tied for the highest ever recorded temperatures in Canada with 45 C 113 F observed at both locations on July 5, 1937. In winter, temperatures below 45 C 49 F are possible even in the south during extreme cold snaps.
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			<pubDate>Thu, 19 Jan 2017 15:02:46 PST</pubDate>
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			<title>South Africa</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/place/38/south-africa.html</link>
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				South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa RSA, is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by 2,798 kilometers 1,739 mi of coastline of Southern Africa stretching along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans to the north by the neighboring countries of Namibia, Botswana, and Zimbabwe and to the east and northeast by Mozambique and Eswatini Swaziland and it surrounds the enclaved country of Lesotho. South Africa is the largest country in Southern Africa and the 25thlargest country in the world by land area and, with over 57 million people, is the world's 24thmost populous nation. It is the southernmost country on the mainland of the Old World or the Eastern Hemisphere. About 80 percent of South Africans are of SubSaharan African ancestry, divided among a variety of ethnic groups speaking different African languages, nine of which have official status. The remaining population consists of Africa's largest communities of European White, Asian Indian, and multiracial Coloured ancestry.South Africa is a multiethnic society encompassing a wide variety of cultures, languages, and religions. Its pluralistic makeup is reflected in the constitution's recognition of 11 official languages, which is the fourth highest number in the world. Two of these languages are of European origin Afrikaans developed from Dutch and serves as the first language of most coloured and white South Africans English reflects the legacy of British colonialism, and is commonly used in public and commercial life, though it is fourthranked as a spoken first language. The country is one of the few in Africa never to have had a coup d'tat, and regular elections have been held for almost a century. However, the vast majority of black South Africans were not enfranchised until 1994. During the 20th century, the black majority sought to recover its rights from the dominant white minority, with this struggle playing a large role in the country's recent history and politics. The National Party imposed apartheid in 1948, institutionalizing previous racial segregation. After a long and sometimes violent struggle by the African National Congress ANC and other antiapartheid activists both inside and outside the country, the repeal of discriminatory laws began in 1990.
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			<pubDate>Sun, 31 Mar 2019 14:17:33 PDT</pubDate>
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			<title>South Central Europe</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/place/7/south-central-europe.html</link>
			<pubDate>Mon, 16 Jan 2017 19:51:16 PST</pubDate>
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			<title>South Eastern Europe</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/place/6/south-eastern-europe.html</link>
			<pubDate>Mon, 16 Jan 2017 19:50:13 PST</pubDate>
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			<title>Spain</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/place/4/spain.html</link>
			<description>
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				Spain, officially the Kingdom of Spain Spanish Reino de Espaa, is a country mostly located on the Iberian Peninsula in Europe. Its territory also includes two archipelagoes the Canary Islands off the coast of Africa, and the Balearic Islands in the Mediterranean Sea. The African enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla make Spain the only European country to have a physical border with an African country Morocco. Several small islands in the Alboran Sea are also part of Spanish territory. The country's mainland is bordered to the south and east by the Mediterranean Sea except for a small land boundary with Gibraltar to the north and northeast by France, Andorra, and the Bay of Biscay and to the west and northwest by Portugal and the Atlantic Ocean.
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			<pubDate>Mon, 17 Dec 2018 13:13:44 PST</pubDate>
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			<title>Sweden</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/place/15/sweden.html</link>
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				Sweden Swedish Sverige, officially the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Scandinavian Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north and Finland to the east, and is connected to Denmark in the southwest by a bridgetunnel across the resund, a strait at the SwedishDanish border. At 450,295 square kilometres 173,860 sq mi, Sweden is the largest country in Northern Europe, the thirdlargest country in the European Union and the fifth largest country in Europe by area. Sweden has a total population of 10.2 million of which 2.4 million has a foreign background. It has a low population density of 22 inhabitants per square kilometre 57sq mi. The highest concentration is in the southern half of the country.
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			<pubDate>Mon, 17 Dec 2018 13:15:04 PST</pubDate>
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			<title>United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/place/1/united-kingdom-of-great-britain-and-northern-ireland.html</link>
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				The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. The country includes the island of Great Britain, the northeastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands. Northern Ireland is the only part of the UK that shares a land border with another sovereign statethe Republic of Ireland. Apart from this land border the UK is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, the North Sea, the English Channel and the Irish Sea.  The United Kingdom is so called because England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland have united to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain.The United Kingdom of Great Britain started on May 1, 1707 when England and Scotland united. Onehundred years later, in 1801, Ireland joined Great Britain to become United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Even though Southern Ireland properly called Eire, or the Republic of Ireland is no longer part of the United Kingdom, the UK still retains sovereignty over Northern Ireland Ulster, which incorporates it into the kingdom.  These days, the United Kingdom is mostly referred to as the UK.The flag of the United Kingdom is the Union Jack on 12 April 1606, a new flag to represent this regal union between England and Scotland was specified in a royal decree, according to which the flag of England also representing Wales by implication, a red cross with a white background, known as St. George's Cross, and the flag of Scotland a white saltire with a blue background, known as the Saltire or St. Andrew's Cross, would be joined together according to the forme made by our heralds, and sent by Us to our Admerall to be published to our Subjects. forming the flag of Great Britain and first union flag. The United Kingdom is also famous for Big Ben Big Ben is a very tall clock in the center of the capital. A lot of people from all over the world come to see this wonderful sight.
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			<pubDate>Sun, 06 Jan 2019 14:42:12 PST</pubDate>
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			<title>Vietnam</title>
			<link>https://agardenersforum.com/zone/place/33/vietnam.html</link>
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				Vietnam Vietnamese Vit Nam pronounced, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam Vietnamese Cng ha x hi ch ngha Vit Nam, is the easternmost country on the Southeast Asian Indochinese Peninsula. With an estimated 95.5 million inhabitants as of 2018, it is the 15th most populous country in the world. Vietnam shares its land borders with China to the north, and Laos and Cambodia to the west. It shares its maritime borders with Thailand through the Gulf of Thailand, and the Philippines, Indonesia and Malaysia through the South China Sea. Its capital city is Hanoi, while its most populous city is Ho Chi Minh City.Archaeological excavations indicate that Vietnam was inhabited as early as the Paleolithic age. The ancient Vietnamese nation was annexed by China in the 2nd century BC, which subsequently made Vietnam a division of China for over a millennium. The first independent monarchy emerged in the 10th century AD. This paved the way for successive imperial dynasties as the nation expanded geographically southward until the Indochina Peninsula was colonised by the French in the mid19th century. Modern Vietnam was born upon the Declaration of Independence from France in 1945. Following Vietnamese victory against the French in the First Indochina War, which ended in 1954, the nation was divided into two rival states communist North and anticommunist South. Conflicts intensified in the Vietnam War, which saw extensive US intervention in support of South Vietnam and ended with North Vietnamese victory in 1975.After North and South Vietnam were reunified under a unitary socialist government in 1976, the country became economically and politically isolated until 1986, when the Communist Party initiated a series of economic and political reforms that facilitated Vietnamese integration into world politics and the global economy. As a result of the successful reforms, Vietnam has enjoyed a high GDP growth rate, consistently ranked among the fastestgrowing countries in the world. It nevertheless faces challenges including poverty, corruption and inadequate social welfare. By 2010, Vietnam had established diplomatic relations with 178 countries. It is a member of such international organisations as the United Nations UN, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations ASEAN, the AsiaPacific Economic Cooperation APEC forum, and the World Trade Organization WTO.
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			<pubDate>Tue, 08 Jan 2019 16:13:06 PST</pubDate>
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			<title>Western Europe</title>
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			<pubDate>Mon, 16 Jan 2017 19:49:37 PST</pubDate>
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