That was the subject of an e-mail from Anne Giles Clelland of Handshake 2.0 in reply to a friend who sent her a "tangy plant" the first day she joined Facebook.

The friend replied:

ROFL  [From H20:  An abbreviation for "Rolling on the floor laughing."  Humph.]

It's one of the thousands of applications you can add to your FB page (and one that probably the largest number of my friends have installed). The vast majority of the apps are "silly little time-wasters," and this is probably no exception, but it wastes very little time (comparatively) and is theoretically for a good cause (fight global warming). If you want to play - and you certainly don't have to - you have to install the app (which you can almost certainly do via the invite I sent) and then you'll have a little "garden" on your screen of plants you've been sent. You can get more points/etc. by sending other people plants, tending their plants, taking care of their gardens, etc.

Here's a link to the (Lil) Green Patch app page.  According to that page, "Our sponsors contribute money to save the Rainforests as you use this application. After expenses we will donate revenue to funding a portfolio of reforestation project.."

"Using the application" means sending plants to friends' FB pages, etc.

It's all a bit silly... but good clean fun.

***

Hmm.  How does one download the application?...

Ack, another request!

"Here is a Bany plant for your (Lil) Green Patch. Could you help me by sending a plant back? Together we can fight Global Warming!"

Send a plant back?!  Wouldn't that fall into the "silly little time-wasters" category? 

I wonder what kind of plants they have...