Tag: home and garden
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Year-round gardening: Consider this before adding artificial turf to your Colorado landscape
It seems like a dream solution. No more watering, mowing, fertilizing, aerating or raking. Seems environmentally friendly, saves water. Best of all it is green all year! If you think this is a great solution, there are a couple of things you might want to think about before replacing your turf with plastic carpeting (aka…
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At Home: Tired of your cabinets? Here’s when to replace, reface or repaint
When my husband and I bought a beach vacation condo last fall, we knew the place needed work. But because our goal was to rent it out to cover the carrying costs and occasionally enjoy the place ourselves, we didn’t want to overdo the improvements. We wanted to do “just enough” to spiff up the…
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At Home: Advice to reader who cries ‘Help! I want my house back’
Occasionally, I get a call from a reader whose situation has all the markings of a class action suit — that is, one person acting on behalf of many (maybe you). Maureen Rabazinski’s email was such a case. Two weeks ago, the 62-year-old nurse practitioner from Winter Park, Fla., wrote for advice. Dear Marni, “HELP!”…
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Year-round gardening: Colorado’s harvest season is here
It has been said, “The heat of August produces nature’s candy. There’s nothing tastier than a vine-ripened August tomato.” Whoever said it, boy, did they ever get that right. Let the harvest begin! Now is the time to look around and appreciate all of your hard work … and then finish up chores. Vegetables •…
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Year-round gardening: Prostrate weeds a July nightmare
All of the sudden, you see them. They might be taking over bare spots between plants, or even under them. They can grow in the spaces between brick or paver pathways. They sprawl out at astonishing speed. Prostrate or spotted spurge (Euphorbia maculata) is a very low-growing plant, native to Eastern North America. The entire…
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At Home: Shipping solution makes getting used furniture, heirlooms easier
Like many green, budget-minded consumers, Fayre Makeig furnishes her home only with secondhand furniture. “I can’t imagine buying a new piece of furniture,” said the wife and mother of two. “I wouldn’t want to pay that much.” Until recently, however, her furniture search never went beyond her immediate area because she was the one picking…
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At Home: Buying art on a cruise ship could get you in deep water — or not
I know you’re going to make fun of me, so let’s just get this out there: I bought art on a cruise ship. OK, laugh. While gallery owners and art appraisers will mock you for this, you could do worse. My husband and I faced an unusual situation at our house: a blank wall. I…
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Year-round gardening: How to attract bees to your garden
It’s no secret that pollinators are the key to plant survival. For those who have an appreciation for our buzzing brethren, there are various options to attract them to your home. With almost 1,000 native species of bees in Colorado, creating a hospitable space for them can be relatively easy. Some gardeners might hesitate to…
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At Home: New kitchen offers cooks chance to reorganize
When most expectant parents would be nesting, my daughter and her husband tore out their kitchen. Sawdust swirled and workers buzzed while every dish, glass, pantry item, utensil, pot, pan, canned good and cooking appliance sat in the adjacent family room as if someone tossed in a grenade. So much for nesting. When Baby George,…
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Year-round gardening: These tasks await Colorado gardeners in July
”Everything good, everything magical happens between the months of June and August.” — Jenny Han Squeeze the ice cubes into the water bottle; July is a couple of days away. Many activities await Colorado gardeners in what’s typically the hottest month of the year, including maintaining, weeding and even harvesting. Lucky us! Early July •…