Sherry recently hinted on Instagram Stories that we were up to our old staple-coloring antics. And by that I mean we were installing another stair runner (admittedly one of the less popular definitions of “antics”). But after installing one in our old house 7 years ago it has become one of our favorite projects – just because we truly believe anyone can do it, and whatever runner you choose can give you a totally different look (and a nice grip underfoot, but more on that functional upgrade in a minute). Why We Wanted A Stair Runner Before we get into the “how” of adding this runner, let’s talk about the “why.” We’re not people who automatically default to covering our stairs. At our beach house, for instance, we decided against a runner because the original wood was so charming. We eventually did add some temporary stick-on runner treads to help our chihuahua, Burger, navigate the stairs more easily (we used this removable tape to hold them down, and it came up cleanly later when we sold the house). Continue reading How We Installed A Stair Runner at Young House Love. from Young House Love https://www.younghouselove.com/diy-sisal-stair-runner-install/ from https://summerblakeley.wordpress.com/2020/10/21/how-we-installed-a-stair-runner/
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Winter is afoot! With the nights becoming chilly, now is the time to start thinking about what to do with your garden until springtime. Soon enough soil will freeze and many plants will stop growing or die. But there are steps you can take to preserve what you have! Read on to find out how to prepare your garden and save any vegetables you might’ve been growing.
1. Take care of your root crops
If you have root crops like carrots, beets, or turnips in your garden, you’re in luck! These require less maintenance because they are able to stay inside the ground after a frost. However, make sure you’re taking them out before the ground freezes over or they may die. Some root crops like parsnips even taste better when kept buried in near freezing weather for 2 to 4 weeks!
2. What to do with your leafy greens
If you’ve been following us for a while and took our advice in August to plant these leafy vegetables, you now get to reap the rewards! It’s time to harvest those sweet greens for some fresh homemade salads and dishes. If you’re willing to wait a little bit, veggies like kale and collards get sweeter with a little light frost. Cabbages and Swiss chard can handle the frost, if you want to harvest them all at once, but their outer covering may get a little damaged. Lettuces, however, cannot withstand the cold. Take them out before the frost hits.
3. Reduce irrigation
If you’re someone who has their sprinklers on overnight or all hours of the day, we have some good news! You can lower the use of sprinklers if you’re in a warmer weather and stop it altogether if you’re in a cooler weather. Now you can save your water usage and lower your water bill without compromising the quality of your lawn. Win-win!
4. Herbs for winter
Herbs may seem like very delicate plants that would be unlikely to survive winter, but that’s not true! Herbs like sage, thyme and chives are hardy perennials that will survive the harsh weather with no problem. Some other herbs like rosemary and basil need to be dug up and brought inside where they will happily continue to grow.
5. Preparing the soil for spring
Preparing your soil in advance will make your work much easier come spring. Adding things like compost, manure, bone meal, and kelp will add nutrients to your soil and keep it healthy until spring. You can start working on it right as spring comes instead of having to fill it up with nutrients and wait for them to get incorporated! Add a layer of organic mulch for extra protection from winter rains and keeping your enriched soil safe. Winter doesn’t have to mean everything dies until the spring! Taking the proper precautions and using the right products can help keep your favorite herbs and veggies growing throughout the colder months. Get started on these steps while the weather is still mild — and if you haven’t already, make sure you’re also caring for your tools and keeping them safe from the icy cold.
The post How to Prepare Your Garden for the Winter Season first appeared on Espoma. from Espoma https://www.espoma.com/fruits-vegetables/uncategorized/how-to-prepare-your-garden-for-the-winter-season/ from https://summerblakeley.wordpress.com/2020/10/19/how-to-prepare-your-garden-for-the-winter-season/ Espoma Organic Bio-tone, Soil Acidifier, and Land & Sea compost are all keys to success in Garden Answer’s latest project! Learn more about planting Rose of Sharon!
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The post Video: Planting a Super Tall Rose of Sharon with Garden Answer first appeared on Espoma. from Espoma https://www.espoma.com/espoma-videos/video-planting-a-super-tall-rose-of-sharon-with-garden-answer-2/ from https://summerblakeley.wordpress.com/2020/10/15/video-planting-a-super-tall-rose-of-sharon-with-garden-answer-2/ Anthurium – commonly known as flamingo flower – is a super common and super beloved houseplant. Learn everything you need to know about caring for them with this ultimate guide from Summer Rayne Oakes. Featured Products:
The post Video: Ultimate Guide to Anthurium Care with Homestead Brooklyn first appeared on Espoma. from https://summerblakeley.wordpress.com/2020/10/15/video-ultimate-guide-to-anthurium-care-with-homestead-brooklyn/
As many of you know I’m an avid reader. SO far I’ve read 68 books this year, 70 last year, and 53 in 2018. So you’d think I have bursting bookshelves…. nope! I actually hardly own ANY of them in my book collection! I fly through books so fast that I prefer to get them…
from Bright Green Door https://www.brightgreendoor.com/my-book-collection/ from https://summerblakeley.wordpress.com/2020/10/12/my-book-collection-books-i-keep-and-how-i-store-them/ Espoma Organic Bio-tone, Soil Acidifier, and Land & Sea compost are all keys to success in Garden Answer latest project. Follow along and see why! Featured Products: The post Video: Planting a Super Tall Rose of Sharon with Garden Answer first appeared on Espoma. from Espoma https://www.espoma.com/garden-answer/video-planting-a-super-tall-rose-of-sharon-with-garden-answer/ from https://summerblakeley.wordpress.com/2020/10/12/video-planting-a-super-tall-rose-of-sharon-with-garden-answer/
Hey friends! It’s been a while since I’ve posted. Sorry about that. I have a lot to share with you though! Five on Friday is the best way to jump back in because it’s where I share anything and everything. 1- Best Book “When Life Gives you Pears” by Jeannie Gaffigan. **Contains Affiliate Links** I just finished listening…
from Bright Green Door https://www.brightgreendoor.com/five-on-friday-18/ from https://summerblakeley.wordpress.com/2020/10/10/five-on-friday-2/ Hoo boy, today’s post has all the good stuff: murder, mystery, INTRIGUE! Just kidding it actually has none of that. But it does have a riveting step-by-step tutorial that involves ten test pots of paint and a whole lot of lattice. So let’s get right into how we created this colorful wood wall treatment in our son’s room. Last time you saw this room in July, we had installed this easy upholstered headboard and built-in bookshelf. It made his room so much more functional (and extra cozy), but we mentioned that we were all looking forward to adding some more color & personality in there for him over time – especially on that wall at the foot of his bed which, because we vaulted the ceilings in here, is over 9 feet tall. After we added this large colorful wall mural to our daughter’s tallest wall, our son became even more eager to have something bold and fun in his room too. Continue reading A Colorful Planked Wall Treatment For Our Son’s Room at Young House Love. from Young House Love https://www.younghouselove.com/colorful-planked-wall-treatment/ from https://summerblakeley.wordpress.com/2020/10/08/a-colorful-planked-wall-treatment-for-our-sons-room/ Garden clubs are a great way to share your horticulture hobby with other like-minded individuals. It’s a space where you can learn all about plant life and share your gardening ideas. They can be as small as a group of friends or as large as a neighborhood! Many of them take an interest in preservation of local natural habitats and general community service. Members of garden clubs come in all shapes and sizes. Anyone can start or join one! You don’t even have to be experienced because the clubs provide a safe space for novices to learn and grow their own hobby. Still, it’s understandable if you’re on the fence about joining one. Or maybe you are a part of a garden club, but you don’t know about the full benefits you can be taking advantage of. Luckily for us, we were able to sit down with Gay Austin, the 46th president of the National Garden Clubs (NGC), to get all the details! “Our partnership with Espoma has been great since the start,” Gay says. “We both had a goal in mind for garden clubs. Espoma had the products, and the NGC had the programs. So we just meshed together.” One great outcome of this partnership has been our grant program. Every year we select 20 clubs to give $250 grants to, and then we get to watch their ideas flourish! These grants help your club receive funding to complete different types of projects. Whether it’s needed for tools, disaster relief management, or education—your chosen project can be almost anything. “It can be as simple as a flowerbed in a public space,” Gay tells us, “as long as it’s providing knowledge for what plants are needed.” Want to show hospital patients how colorful flowers can brighten their rooms? How about beautifying a local school? Whether you’re focusing on wildlife conservation or want to give back to your community with a public garden renovation, the possibilities of eligible projects are endless! Gay told us she hopes to see future projects where clubs get together to replant native plants that were destroyed from natural disasters. If you’re interested in becoming one of our grant winners, all you need to do is complete the application. Attach some photos and explain your project. Then, wait and see if you’ve been selected. If you have, be sure you send us photos of your completed project and local press information so we can spread the word about your great work! Don’t forget to check out our recent grant winners above the application. Gay looks back fondly on past winners who have brought wonderful projects to life using the grants. “Many clubs focus on beautifying their cities,” She says. “Some clubs bring projects to senior citizens in assisted living facilities. Those citizens go from living in a home with a garden to only being able to have potted plants. So bringing the joy of horticulture back to them is really beneficial.” These projects can affect people as old as these senior citizens to children in school. Whether or not you’re interested in an Espoma grant, we still want to hear about your garden club! Tell us via Twitter using the hashtag #EspomaGardenClub for a chance to be featured on our social media. We’ll be spreading the word about other garden clubs in the meantime, so stay tuned for some inspiration. The post How Espoma Can Help Your Garden Club Grow first appeared on Espoma. from Espoma https://www.espoma.com/garden-clubs/how-espoma-can-help-your-garden-club-grow/ from https://summerblakeley.wordpress.com/2020/10/05/how-espoma-can-help-your-garden-club-grow/ In addition to our 1400 square feet of indoor space, we’re lucky that our house also has some pretty great outdoor spaces – including a large second-story deck off of our family room. Having all of this bonus living space up in the trees has quickly become one of the “rooms” we’re most thankful for, and you’ll see why in this post. outdoor armchairs | striped outdoor pillows | similar outdoor sofa | coffee table | dining table | black dining chairs It was raining when we bought the house back in February so we didn’t spend much time out here, but you may remember this before photo that we shared along with all of the exterior before & afters back in May. You know, before we painted the house and replaced all of the rotting deck boards with Trex and those shaky old railings with new not-shaky ones (more on those updates here). Continue reading Our Low-Maintenance, Multi-Function Deck Space at Young House Love. from Young House Love https://www.younghouselove.com/low-maintenance-outdoor-deck/ from https://summerblakeley.wordpress.com/2020/09/29/our-low-maintenance-multi-function-deck-space/ |