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Last Updated: Apr 18th, 2022 - 21:02:25
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Lawns and Gardens
Easy Tips for Taking Your Deck from "Autumn Drab" to "Fall Fab"
Spring may be the time for renewal but when it comes to your backyard deck a pinch of care, a dash of improvements and a touch of TLC is just the right recipe for taking your deck from “Autumn Drab” to “Fall Fab.”
“Most people think spring or early summer are the only seasons to spruce up the deck, but fall is an ideal time to get things done before the worst of weather hits,” explains Terry Guest, marketing manager from Weyerhaeuser. “Best of all -- deck dwellers in warmer climates can immediately enjoy any ‘beautifying’ improvements a few extra months, while the rest of us get a jump-start on next year’s decking season.”
Sep 16, 2005, 21:24
Lawns and Gardens
Getting Perennials Ready for Spring ... Now!
The air is cooler. Clouds are darker. Plants are losing their summer luster. Fall flowers are blooming. Now is the time to get ready for spring! Right? Getting Ready Perennial plants are always getting ready for the next season. In the spring, they are getting ready to grow and flower. In the summer, they are in full-swing with blooms and leaves.
Sep 16, 2005, 01:10
Lawns and Gardens
Daffodils -- Fall Investment, Many Spring Returns Plant Now for Spring Color
Gardeners -- start your spring color planning now because fall planting time is upon us. Here are three good reasons to add daffodils to your landscape planting schedule: First, there is a range and beauty in daffodils well beyond the traditional yellow trumpets you so often see along the roadways. Second, daffodils are great naturalizers that will flourish for many years with little care when planted in sunny, well drained flower beds. Finally, daffodils are deer and rodent resistant -- a major benefit for those of you struggling to garden in the presence of our tetrapoded friends.
Sep 13, 2005, 23:36
Lawns and Gardens
Wise Watering Ways
When it comes to watering your yard, you may be able to save yourself some "green" without your lawn turning brown -by using an automatic irrigation system. If that system is correctly designed, installed and maintained, it can keep your landscape looking lush on the least amount of water.
Sep 8, 2005, 23:19
Lawns and Gardens
How To Maintain Your Walk-Behind Lawn Mower
The grass can be greener on your side of the fence if you make sure that when you're ready to cut the lawn, your mower is good to go. It all boils down to inspecting and replacing the air filter, which is the number-one cause of a "no start" condition, say experts at Murray. The first thing to do when working on your mower is to disconnect the spark plug to prevent accidents.
Sep 8, 2005, 23:11
Lawns and Gardens
Potential Blower Bans Creating a Lot of Noise
When it comes to maintaining the nation's 30 million acres of lawns, experts say the gas-powered blower is king of the equipment arsenal for professional landscapers and conscientious homeowners alike. However, in over 250 cities across the country from New York to L.A., the topic of gas-powered leaf blower bans is creating a lot of noise.
Sep 8, 2005, 23:07
Lawns and Gardens
New, Cutting-Edge Plants Will Make Your Season Shine
Fall-the second planting season-is the perfect time to dress your garden with new plants that will reflect your personal style through Thanksgiving. Just a little time and creativity will result in remarkable changes in your yard. Tried and true mums are fine in their place, but trying something new can make a dramatic difference.
Sep 8, 2005, 23:05
Lawns and Gardens
Here's How You Can
If you have a green thumb for gardening, you just might enjoy keeping that thumb busy in an oven mitt for another rewarding pastime-home canning. Once a way rural Americans preserved fruits and vegetables through winter, canning today is a popular extension to gardening and a gratifying way to share the bounty of your summer labor with others.
Sep 8, 2005, 22:52
Lawns and Gardens
Keeping Landscapes Lean, Clean, Green-And Firewise Careful Landscaping Can Help Your Home Survive a Wildfire.
A well-maintained landscape can not only enhance the beauty and value of any property-it can also serve as a fuel break. Under the right conditions, a "Firewise" home can even survive a wildfire. The goal is to keep your landscaping lean, clean and green. If water is scarce, contact a landscape specialist to discuss plants that require less irrigation and are native to your area.
Sep 8, 2005, 17:12
Lawns and Gardens
Banishing Pesky Pests To Create A Lush Lawn
If a once healthy lawn no longer seems to have the dense, lush surface it had (or perhaps dense and lush are two words that have never been associated with that specific lawn), now is the time to identify the cause of the problem. A lawn must be hardy to survive weed, insect and disease attacks.
Sep 8, 2005, 17:07
Lawns and Gardens
Build A Better Patio
Experts say the key to building a better patio is to start with a sound foundation. Many home owners start their patio projects by laying a bed of sand, but sand is not a particularly stable base material. Instead, contractors suggest using a two-step base.
Sep 8, 2005, 16:32
Lawns and Gardens
Make The Most Of Your Acreage
With the right tools, you can transform a country home into the estate of your dreams. Here's an equipment primer with an easy way to remember all the steps-the letter "M."
Sep 8, 2005, 15:16
Lawns and Gardens
Reclaiming Your Patio From The Sun
If you're like many home owners, your decision to buy your house was probably influenced by an attractive deck or patio. If that was the case, there's a good chance you later found that the area is useless much of the time because of the hot glaring sun. Unusable decks and patios are a common problem. Few building sites offer large trees close enough to provide adequate shade.
Sep 8, 2005, 15:02
Lawns and Gardens
Backyard Getaways
For a growing number of Americans, getting away from it all doesn't involve going very far. That's because the latest trend in outdoor spaces involves creating a vacation spot in your own backyard-and it's a trend Americans have taken seriously. In 2004 alone, homeowners spent more than $62 billion on outdoor living products and remodeling services, according to the Hearth, Patio and Barbecue Association.
Sep 8, 2005, 14:48
Lawns and Gardens
Create Your Own Backyard Space
As our lives become busier, our need for rest and rejuvenation is increasingly important to our health and well-being. With rising gasoline prices and flight delays often defeating the purpose of vacationing altogether, homeowners are embracing the relaxation value of the "outdoor room." Here's how you can create an outdoor room to suit your lifestyle. Pat Simpson, host of HGTV's "Room to Improve," "Before & After" and "Fix It Up!", suggests starting with some basics, then adding elements that appeal to the senses.
Sep 8, 2005, 14:31
Lawns and Gardens
Herbs: Spicing Up Gardens Across America
Herb gardens are growing in popularity, and for good reason. In addition to their obvious role in cooking, they are easy to grow and maintain, and they add color, interesting textures and rich or subtle fragrances to the home and garden. According to Charlie Nardozzi, senior horticulturist for the National Gardening Association (NGA), more than 15 million households in the United States grow herbs, and money spent on herb gardening has nearly doubled over the last five years.
Sep 8, 2005, 00:50
Lawns and Gardens
Why Gardening Jobs Just Got A Whole Lot Easier
The garden of your dreams is more likely to come up roses if you have time-saving tools. Quite a few gardening and landscaping jobs involve extensive digging, which means investing many man hours of labor. That's where a compact garden tractor can a be handy thing to own. A garden tractor is a big timesaver, whether you're planting potatoes, creating a patio or digging a pond. Some subcompact tractors-designed to be useful in small spaces-can be surprisingly versatile. With a variety of attachments, these tractors can till, dig postholes, backhoe, mow and even throw snow.
Sep 8, 2005, 00:33
Lawns and Gardens
It's Time For Lime
Now is the best time to lay the groundwork for next year's greener lawn. Controlling your lawn's acid level is an important first step. Acidic soil is unhealthy for grass and reduces the effectiveness of fertilizer. A good way to improve acid soil is to apply lawn lime. "A rule of thumb is that one bag of lime should be applied for each 1,000 square feet of lawn," says Burt Brewer of Oldcastle, a manufacturer of lawn and garden products.
Sep 8, 2005, 00:18
Lawns and Gardens
How To Eliminate Lawn Stress Without Stress
If your lawn is looking stressed, there's no need for you to feel stressed, too. Keeping a few maintenance tips in mind-such as mower deck height, watering and fertilizing-can make lawn care easier and more effective. Mower deck adjustment. Adjusting the height of the mower deck can enhance stress tolerance put on the blades of grass.
Sep 8, 2005, 00:06
Lawns and Gardens
The Best Bug Repellent is All-Natural
If you’ll be spending any time outdoors during the summer months, there are two precautions you need to take -- put on sunscreen to protect yourself and your kids from the damaging rays of the sun, and bug spray to keep biting insects at bay. Most bug sprays on the market today are safe when used as directed, but Allen Jones, spokesman for Bite Blocker, an all-natural bug spray, points out serious problems with insect repellants that contain DEET, a chemical bug repellent developed 50 years ago by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) for the Army. “The federal EPA claims it’s safe when used as directed, yet most people are unaware of the problems sprays containing DEET can cause and simply use it as needed any way. They don’t take the time to read the warnings in small print on the label, and the label doesn’t explain the problems over exposure can cause.
Sep 1, 2005, 00:35
Lawns and Gardens
Make Fall Cleanup Easier
Summer goes by so quickly, you don’t want to miss a minute of it. But as the days get shorter and the temperatures cool down, the signs are unmistakable – fall is on its way. And even though you know you need to be preparing your lawn, garden and home for the coming months, who wants to waste precious summer days doing chores? Here are some tips to get those pesky tasks finished quickly so you can enjoy your weekends.
Sep 1, 2005, 00:25
Lawns and Gardens
Outdoor Lighting Provides Safety, Security and Style
Outdoor lighting products can be used for a variety of reasons. They help accentuate gardens, fountains and landscaping so you can enjoy the beauty of your outdoor living space. In addition, many studies have shown that a well-lit house will deter criminals. Plus, a lit pathway can help show the way through the yard and keep you from trampling your garden or from tripping and falling.
Different types of landscape lighting serve different purposes. Whether used for functional or aesthetic use, the two main categories include low voltage lighting and solar lighting.
Sep 1, 2005, 00:10
Lawns and Gardens
Lawn Secrets from the Mow Master
Whether there’s midseason drought or a family vacation, keep your lawn green and healthy this summer with advice from John Deere’s “Mow Master” Bill Klutho.
Q: When my town enforced water restrictions during last year’s drought, my lawn suffered. Besides moving to a rainforest, what can I do? -- Wishing for Water
Aug 25, 2005, 21:22
Lawns and Gardens
Tools of the Trade: Seven Must-Have Tools for Fall Backyard Maintenance
Ask any lawn care professional: Expertise and experience are important elements when tending to a backyard. But it’s the equipment you use that can determine whether you’ll have a lush, thriving yard when spring comes around. With the right gadgets in your garage, you’ll have a head start on cultivating a golf-course-quality yard. But how do you choose between the hundreds of lawn and garden products on the market, all of which promise to give your green thumb a helping hand? Here are seven must-have tools to ensure quick and easy fall yard maintenance.
Aug 25, 2005, 21:16
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