GardenSecrets - Better Gardening Tips And Articles

2006-11-26T05:10:00.000-08:00

How to Create a Decorative Garden Window

By Kathy Burns-Millyard

Tip! Know what you want to get rid of/or disguise in your garden � eg, that ugly rear fence needs cloaking or finally ridding yourself of that terrible shed, which blocks all your light.

If you have a sunny window in a room where you don't have to worry about privacy, this d�cor idea will provide a country home feel along with the beauty of Mother Nature's flowers.

What you will need for this project:

1. Rope about 10 inches longer than your window is wide

2. 6 small flower pots with handles (small tin buckets work well also)

3. 6 clothespins

4. Potting soil

5. 2 decorative pots

6. 2 mug hooks

7. 2 potted plant trellises

Tip! Water Gardening. Bring in pumps, drain, clean, refill (if necessary) and store tender water plants prior to freezing.

8. An assortment of seeds or seedling herbs and leafy plants such as lettuce, spinach, parsley, and chives

9. 4 morning glory seeds or two morning glory plants

10. 1 other somewhat tall decorative item that fits into the d�cor of the room

11. Measuring Tape

12. Pencil

How to Create this Look:

- If you are using morning glory seeds, you will first want to put them in warm water and leave them there for about 24 hours. This helps the seeds have a shorter germination time.

- Put potting soil in the 6 small pots and 2 decorative pots.

Tip! Have a big picture of your garden. What do you want your garden to look like and what sort of theme?

- Plant the seeds or seedlings according to directions on seed packet.

- For placing the rope, measure how tall your window is then divide this number into fourths. Measure that length from the top of the window and make a mark with a pencil on both sides. For example if your window is 36 inches tall you will make a mark at 9 inches from the top.

- Put in the mug hooks where you made your marks.

- Tie a secure knot in both ends of your rope.

- Push one knot over a mug hook.

- Slide the handles of the small pots onto the rope.

Tip! Pull weeds. If weeds grow in the midst of your wildflower garden, pull them by hand before they have a chance to flower and populate.

- Carefully push the other knot over the mug hook.

Caution: If you have ceramic or glass pots be careful at this step. Slide the pots to the center slowly and have them next to each other so they do not slide and break each other as your are moving your rope up to put the knot over the mug hook.

Home And Garden - Country And Rural Life. Gardening and Birds, Raising Chickens and Goats, Baking Bread. more coming soon.

- Evenly space your pots and keep them in place by putting a clothespin on the handle and rope.

- Push the 2 potted plant trellises into the 2 decorative pots, and place one on each side of the window.

- Put your other decorative item in the center.

- Water your plants, and wait for Mother Nature to do the rest.

� 2005, Kathy Burns-Millyard. This article is provided courtesy of The Do It Yourself Home Decorating Network - http://www.diyhomedecorating.com - a large and growing decorating and decor website featuring articles, tips, advice, and popular decor shopping. This article may be freely published on any website, as long as the author, copyright, website address and link, and this notice are left intact.

2006-11-25T05:18:00.000-08:00

Create a Garden Oasis with a Waterfall Fountain

By Stephanie Gottschalk

Tip! Think about your budget as most people underestimate the value of their garden and many people make costly mistakes by neglecting their garden.

We work hard to make our homes our castles - carefully selected color schemes, weekend improvement projects, comfortable furniture and dozens of decorative objects are just a few ways in which we strive to create an environment that reflects us as individuals and acts as a retreat from the hectic outside world. For all of our efforts, however, most people focus only on the interior of their homes, never realizing the potential held by their yard or garden to truly turn their homes into havens of rest and relaxation. So what's the easiest and fastest way to turn an ordinary outdoor space into a beautiful, soothing oasis? Get yourself a pre-fabricated waterfall fountain and you'll be well on your way to a backyard that will be the envy of the neighborhood.

Tip! Choose a sunny, well-drained gardening site. Most wildflowers need at least five to eight hours of sunlight a day and well-drained soil.

Waterfall fountains are typically pre-assembled, so they require very little effort to set up - unlike custom-built natural rock waterfalls, which can take weeks to install and cost thousands upon thousands of dollars. Installing a pre-made waterfall fountain in your yard is much more economical, and can take as little time as one afternoon! Not only are they simple to set up, they're self-contained as well - which means no pre-existing pond or pool is needed. The waterfall fountain comes with its own �reservoir', from which the water is pumped to the top of the structure. All you have to do is place it in the desired spot and fill it up with a garden hose.

Tip! Prepare the soil for early spring seeding. Turn over the garden soil late in the season while amending with organic matter such as leaves, compost, or well-rotted manure.

No matter what the natural landscape is like in your region, or the style you've decorated your outdoor space, you can find a waterfall fountain that will fit in perfectly. The various styles of the rock formations, colors and shapes available for waterfall features are diverse enough to look equally at home in the arid Arizona desert as in a lush, tropical Hawaiian setting.

Another perk of waterfall fountains is that they're super lightweight, making them easy to move. A natural rock waterfall would be a permanent feature, while a waterfall fountain can be moved around your yard as your landscape plans change or taken with you when you move. They're molded from real rock formations, which gives them a texture that is remarkably natural looking.

Tip! Sunflowers � There's no better flower for your garden than the sunflower. Sunflowers have yellowish-orange petal with a black circle in the middle.

This quick, easy project is a fun activity for the family and the results will be spectacular. You and your family will have a special place to lounge in the sun, enjoy the wonderful sounds of flowing water, and entertain guests. A waterfall fountain will transform your yard into a resort environment, making you feel like you're always on vacation - and what more could you ask for?

Stephanie Gottschalk writes the blogs 'Picnic Fun - Tips and Recipes' (http://www.picnictips.com) and 'The Joy of Water Fountains' (http://www.waterfountainguide.com) for Specialty Living Inc., an Asheville, North Carolina-based company that aims to share their love of people, nature and life through high quality water fountains and outdoor living products.

2006-11-24T05:16:00.000-08:00

Thinking Of Buying A Hot Tub Spa For Your Garden Or Outside Space?

By Neal Baker

Tip! Represent the water element by using low plantings in the northeast that will allow the flow of positive solar energy. Add a fountain or reflection pool or pond in this area to reflect this beneficial energy throughout the garden.

The traditional hot tub is built like a large barrel with wooden staves.
The water is usually still and circulated only for the purposes of heating and filtering.
The tub is often situated on wooden decking.
Wooden benches or a seat that forms a ring around the inner circumference of the tub is normally used for seating.
The tub is filled with water and is then maintained in much the same way as a swimming pool.
Some of the simple designs use chlorine as a disinfectant. More sophisticated designs use an ozone generator, eliminating much of the need for purchased chemicals or manual treatment of the water.
The tub is heated electrically or occasionally by natural gas, propane and rarely these days wood fires.

Tip! Water Gardening. Bring in pumps, drain, clean, refill (if necessary) and store tender water plants prior to freezing.

Modern Hot Tubs and Spa
The modern style of hot tub is quite different from the traditional wooden tub.
These are often not so deep and are manufactured from fibreglass-reinforced plastic formed into shapes that provide a variety of seating levels within the tub.
Each seat is equipped with hydrotherapy jets that allows water to be directed at various parts of the body.
The water flow may also be aerated for additional effect and some or all of the jets may also
automatically move or rotate, causing the changing pressure of the water on the body to provide a
massage-like effect.
These tubs may be free standing, recessed within a surrounding deck or even portable .
Free standing or portable hot tubs are usually entered by climbing a few steps and then stepping over the side of the tub onto one of the seating areas.
Most people think that external plumbing is required with hot tubs, when in fact most units today are self contained and only need filling with water by a simple garden hose.
Spa hot tubs usually have a number of water circuits, with one providing heating and filtration and the others driving the hydrotherapy jets. Computer with LCD controls are now common on the more expensive tubs with features such as different coloured lighting, sound systems and even flat-screen televisions with integral DVD players.
If you intend to buy a hot tub make sure that you use a reputible UK supplier.

Tip! Plan your garden. Work out what works best for different areas.

Written by Neal Baker on behalf of bathroomsensuite.com ltd online supplier for hot tubs, spas, accessories and chemicals in the UK.

2006-11-22T05:15:00.000-08:00

Right Shed Fred - How To Choose The Right Wooden Shed For Your Garden

By David Smithson

Tip! Rock Gardens - Rock gardens can take on different themes and colour schemes throughout the year with a little careful planning. There is again some heavy physical work involved when you're putting together your rock garden but well worth it in the end.

Wooden sheds seems to have picked up an old-man tag. There's nothing wrong with that, of course - we were really fond of Arthur Fowler in Eastenders; and if a guy wants to smoke his pipe away from the kids, why not? But, old men is not all that sheds are about. In fact, if you're looking for a shed, there are lots of different sizes and designs to choose from nowadays. And people use them for all sorts - including home offices.

So, what should you be thinking about if you're looking for the right construction? Here are a few pointers to set you on your way.

Tip! Represent the space element by an open area in the middle of you garden. It can either be a patio or grass.

How much space have you got for your new wooden shed?
This might seem obvious�but it's also easy to forget. How much space have you got in your garden or yard? And you need to think about height as well as ground space.

Where will it go? Are you going to hide the wooden shed away or use it as a focal point? Wherever you're putting it, you should make sure the ground is level and dry. A gravel or concrete base is ideal - never straight onto grass, because the wood will most likely rot.

What size shed? The size of shed will obviously depend on the amount of space you'll need and what you want to use it for. Are you wanting it for storing gardening equipment? Do you need space for small-scale gardening work, like potting plants? Or, will you be spending more time in there - if it's going to be a home office space, for instance?

Tip! Organic Gardening - Since organic fertilizer and soil conditioning materials are slow working in general, they should be mixed into the soil at least three weeks ahead of planting and the soil thoroughly prepared for the seed or transplants.

Will you need windows? Again, the longer you're going to spend in there, the more likely you'll want to get something with windows. If you're only storing equipment, windows are not necessary - in fact, in terms of security, you're probably better with a shed you can't see into. Bear in mind, the quality of windows will differ between models - some will open and others will be fixed.

How secure does it need to be? Wooden sheds can resemble anything from a large cupboard to a miniture house. The larger versions tend to have stronger frames, use thicker wood and incorporate a sturdier door.

Do you want internal tables or shelves? Again, this will depend if you want to store certain equipment, or if you want to work in the shed.

How easy is it to assemble? You might want to ask how easy the shed you're eyeing will be to assemble. They look great in a shop, but not so great in flat-packs. The easiest ones to assemble are the those already constructed into panels - it means you don't have to do any cutting, installation of windows, or covering of the roof. Be honest, how good are your DIY skills?

Tip! Color may seem trivial at first glance, but it's usually an important factor to those that want to grow roses. Usually it is simply a matter of personal preference, but you may want to try creating a complimentary color palette for your rose garden.

Should you coat your wooden shed? Your shed should come with a guarantee, but you might still want to think about giving it a protective coating. If you're going to do this, it might be worth doing the work before you construct?

David Smithson writes for Jacksons Garden Supplies, a UK based company specialising in wooden garden sheds, garden summer houses & concrete garages.

For more information visit Jacksons Garden Supplies.

2006-11-21T05:09:00.000-08:00

Garden Party

By Renee Kirchner

Tip! Prepare the soil for early spring seeding. Turn over the garden soil late in the season while amending with organic matter such as leaves, compost, or well-rotted manure.

Celebrate a summer birthday with a garden party. This party may be held inside or out but it is best if some of the activities can be done outside. Have your guests dress in casual clothes so they can get messy.

INVITATIONS

You will need white and yellow construction paper, glue and some markers. Fold a piece of the white paper in half. Cut a flower out of the white paper being careful to leave two of the petals joined together. Cut out a yellow circle and glue in the center of your flower. Open the flower to write the invitation inside. Be sure to include your own name, date, address and R.S.V.P. and phone number inside the invitation.

Tip! You will want to consider the size of your garden space, so that you can ensure proper exposure to the air and other elements as well.

DECORATIONS

Decorate the table with a flowered tablecloth. Use a tin watering can as a vase and place cut flowers in it for your centerpiece. Set new, clean garden tools on the table to use as serving spoons for sunflower seeds or for the fruit salad.

SEED PACKET NAPKIN RINGS

You will need cardboard tubes, construction paper, scissors, glue and packets of seeds. Cut a 2-inch section from a cardboard tube. Cover the section with construction paper. Glue one seed packet onto each napkin ring. Insert the napkins into the napkin rings and lay one at each place setting.

Serve Garden Pizzas with fruit salad and sunflower seeds. For the grand finale, serve "Sunshine Punch" and Dirty Cupcakes.

GARDEN PIZZAS

Use refrigerated pizza dough to make individual pizzas. Let children create their own pizza. Supply them with tomato sauce, mozzerella cheese, and an assortment of veggies such as mushrooms, onions, and green peppers. Some of your party guests may prefer plain cheese pizza.

Tip! Where animal manures are available, they are probably the best source of fertilizer and organic matter for the organic gardener. Use manure which has been aged for at least 30 days, or composted.

FRUIT SALAD

Mix together strawberries, cantaloupe, banana slices, or any other favorite fruit.

SUNSHINE PUNCH

Mix 2 liters of orange soda with one pint of vanilla ice cream.

DIRTY CUPCAKES

Bake cupcakes using your favorite cake mix. Frost the cupcakes with chocolate icing. Crumble crushed oreo cookies on top to make the cakes look dirty. Place gummy worms or gummy bugs on top for decoration.

Place a bowl of sunflower seeds or toasted pumpkin seeds in the center of the table as a snack for children.

ACTIVITIES

PIN THE BEE ON THE FLOWER

Using a poster size sheet of white construction paper, draw a large flower. Hang the poster up on a door or a wall before the party. Make a small bee out of construction paper for each of the children. Place a piece of tape on each of the bees. Have children line up one at a time, blindfold them and ask them to pin the bee on the flower. Give prizes to the children who get their bee in the correct place.

Tip! Know what you want to get rid of/or disguise in your garden � eg, that ugly rear fence needs cloaking or finally ridding yourself of that terrible shed, which blocks all your light.

DECORATE TERRA COTTA POTS

Buy a 4" terra cotta pot for each of the children. Supply the children with paint, stickers, ribbons and glue and have them each decorate a pot. They will be able to take these home as party favors later.

PLANTING FLOWER SEEDS

Let the little gardeners plant flower seeds in their terra cotta pots. Have garden tools, dirt, flower seeds and a watering can available for them. Let them get messy since the invitation asked them to wear old clothes. If you have a small plot of dirt in the backyard let them plant a flower garden.

Tip! Sunflowers � There's no better flower for your garden than the sunflower. Sunflowers have yellowish-orange petal with a black circle in the middle.

BEAN BAG TOSS

Place dried beans into snack size zipper baggies to make beanbags. Use two large empty coffee cans as targets. Line the children up in two teams. Give each team five beanbags. The children on each team will take turns tossing the beanbags into the coffee cans. They each get five tosses. The team that gets the most beanbags into the target wins. Give out prizes to the winning team.

FAVORS

Guests can take home the flower seed packets from their napkin rings as well as the terra cotta pots they decorated. Other ideas are gummy worms, flower stickers, and gardening gloves.

Renee Kirchner is a parent, educator, and freelance writer who specializes in writing for children and parents. Visit her fun and informational blog for parents and their kids at http://www.family-friend.blogspot.com and find out more about Renee's writing services offered at http://www.lieurancegroup.blogspot.com or email her at renee.kirchner@usa.net to discuss possible writing projects.

2006-11-20T05:14:00.000-08:00

Chore No More: The Exercise Value of House and Garden Chores

By Arron Stewart

Tip! It's smart gardening to learn what the advantages and disadvantages would be if you were to choose certain roses over others.

Housework, it's a dirty job - but somebody's got to do it!

It can often be difficult to find the motivation to tackle all the little jobs around the house and garden, especially when we factor-in all the other demands on our time and attention. To make the idea even less attractive, our efforts around the house and garden often go unnoticed or unappreciated by others. No wonder most people detest chores.

There is however, a way you can develop a new appreciation for domestic duties. Instead of focusing on the chores themselves, think about the additional physical activity you will get from tackling all that dreaded scrubbing, vacuuming and gardening. You may not realize it, but many household chores actually count as moderate exercise, and some are easily as physically demanding as a brisk walk or jog. Out in the garden, the calorie-burning, muscle-building exercise value of chores can be even more astounding.

Tip! Prepare the soil for early spring seeding. Turn over the garden soil late in the season while amending with organic matter such as leaves, compost, or well-rotted manure.

If you are concerned about your health and wellbeing, as we all should be, putting a bit more effort in around the home and garden can assist in increasing your overall levels of activity and supplement your typical exercise regime. Indeed, you might begin to see housework in a different light when you realize that it offers a rare chance to kill two birds with one stone. As you are about to discover, the exercise value of chores is greater than you think.

Home Vegetable Garden Secrets. Create a Stunning Vegetable Garden in Your Own Backyard.

Estimated Calorie Expenditure in Household/Garden Chores

The following is the estimated average calorie expenditure for an individual performing house and garden chores. As it based on a great number of variables, it is impossible to define the exact calorie expenditure of any particular household chore. The values are listed per hour and per minute. Some other common forms of physical activity have been included so that you can draw comparisons.

For the record, light house or garden work requires relatively little movement and muscular effort. Moderate housework or gardening regards activity that significantly increases heart-rate and demands purposeful muscular effort, but can sustained for prolonged periods. Strenuous activity around the home or garden is highly demanding on the cardio-vascular, skeletal and muscular systems of the body, and cannot be sustained for long periods of time without regular rest and recuperation periods.

Tip! Pull weeds. If weeds grow in the midst of your wildflower garden, pull them by hand before they have a chance to flower and populate.

Remember: Calories are a standard unit for energy measurement in nutrition/exercise science. From the scientific perspective, one calorie is the amount of heat needed to increase the temperature of one gram of water by one degree centigrade. From the lay point of view, calories represent the �fuel' the human body uses to perform all of its functions; such as breathing, digesting, circulating the blood, moving and generating muscular force.

-Estimated Calorie Expenditure in Household/Garden Chores-

Housework, Light - 140+ (/hour) 2.33+ (/min) *
Housework, Moderate - 180+ (/hour) 3.00+ (/min) *
Housework, Strenuous - 260+ (/hour) 4.33+ (/min)

Gardening, Light - 250+ (/hour) 4.16+ (/min) *
Gardening, Moderate - 350+ (/hour) 5.83+ (/min) *
Gardening, Strenuous - 500+ (/hour) 8.33+ (/min)

Golf - 200+ (/hour) 3.33+ (/min) *
Walking(3mph) - 250+ (/hour) 4.33+ (/min) *
Tennis - 350+ (/hour) 5.83+ (/min) *
Hiking - 400+ (/hour) 6.66+ (/min) *
Bicycling - 450+ (/hour) 7.50+ (/min) *
Jogging(5mph) - 500+ (/hour) 8.33+ (/min)

Tip! Build up the southwest area of your garden to produce the stabilizing force of the earth element. You can do this with a rock garden, tall trees and even a stone statue.

A New Perspective on Chores

The above information clearly shows that work around the house and garden stacks up quite favorably with other forms of activity we would more readily perceive as �real' exercise. We all recognize that chores can be effortful and tiring but, until now, you have probably never considered just how they compare as a form of exercise. The trick is to alter your mindset, moving away from old-fashioned notions that sports and outdoor recreation are the only �true' forms of physical exercise.

While this article is unlikely to make you want to rush away from the computer and power through your chores, it should be clear to you that there is actually a hidden value to those loathsome and laborious house and garden tasks. Many of us could benefit from increasing our daily levels of activity, and doing so could be as simple as tackling all those horrible jobs you have been putting off for weeks. Not only will your home be a safer, cleaner and more hospitable environment for the effort, but you will have clocked-up some significant exercise at the same time.

Tip! Choose a sunny, well-drained gardening site. Most wildflowers need at least five to eight hours of sunlight a day and well-drained soil.

Arron Stewart Is 26 years old, lives in Hamilton, New Zealand, and attends the University of Waikato as a graduate student in Sport & Leisure with an additional focus on Sociology and Human Resource Management. A website has been established featuring more information and selected articles of his work: http://www.geocities.com/arron_stew_79

2006-11-19T05:08:00.000-08:00

Holistic Skin Care - Regrowing The Garden Of Youth

By Rebecca Prescott

Growing & Enjoying Your Own Rose Garden. Everything you need to know to get your own rose garden established and thriving.
To win the battle against the effects of time and the environment, we need to do more than just apply lotions and creams to our faces. No matter how sophisticated the ingredients grow, those anti aging creams only improve the appearance of the dead layers of skin on the surface. To reach the deeper, living cells, we need to nourish ourselves from within.
Juices are an great way to get vital antioxidants, phytonutrients, and vitamins in fruits and vegetables we normally would not eat regularly. For example, pomegranate juice has been found to prevent the thickening of the arteries if drunk daily, as well as slow down the oxidation of cholesterol. And new research indicates it may have a much stronger antioxidant effect than red wine and green tea. Beauty foods like these can be a very effective tool in improving the way our skin looks and feels.
Antioxidants are an excellent way to slow down the aging process on our skin. There are a variety of antioxidants found in fruit and vegetables. These include polyphenols, flavanoids, and proanthocyanadins. Proanthacyanadins help capillary walls stay strong, which is important in making sure all the right nutrients and oxygen get to our cells. If our cells are starving because of nutrient transportation problems, they are not going to be healthy, or look good. Blueberries and blackberries are rich sources of proanthocyanadins, so that's a great excuse to make these delicious fruits part of a regular diet. If you can't get fresh berries, or they're too expensive, try frozen berries as they still retain their nutritional value.
Tip! The Formal Style uses lots of straight lines and perfect geometrical shapes. Orderly arrangement of plants instead of random positioning is employed, and close arrangement and pruning is used on many landscaped gardens with this style.
Paul Bedson, who utilizes traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) in his approach to the body, suggests these juices for good skin health:
Carrot, celery and lemon juice

Cucumber, lettuce, and pineapple juice

Half a glass of cucumber juice with half a glass of water
TCM sees healthy skin function in relation to how well the other organs of elimination function. The skin is considered an organ of elimination as it excretes about one quarter of the body's wastes through perspiration. The other organs of elimination are the kidneys, the lungs, the liver and the bowels. The rationale behind considering the excretory organs as a whole when addressing skin health, is that if one of the organs is overloaded, or not doing its job properly, it throws the whole system of excretion out of balance, placing greater stress on the other eliminatory channels. So juices, food and supplements that support these other channels of elimination should also lead to a corresponding improvement in the skin.
Herbs that support the eliminatory channels, and thus indirectly the skin, include burdock, cleavers, nettles, goldenseal, yellow dock, and milk thistle, or st marys thistle.
Tip! Rock Gardens - Rock gardens can take on different themes and colour schemes throughout the year with a little careful planning. There is again some heavy physical work involved when you're putting together your rock garden but well worth it in the end.
References: Paul Bedson, The Complete Family Guide To Natural Healing (Hinkler Books, 2005)
Erica Angyal, Gorgeous Skin In 30 Days (Lothian Books, 2005
http://www.nutraingredients-usa.com/news/ng.asp?n=62044-tesco-pomegreat-pomegranate
Do you suffer from acne? Would you like to learn 6 acne nutrition tips to help you manage your acne better? Or an acne diet article that discusses the link between insulin, bread and acne? Click on the links to find out.

2006-11-17T05:15:00.000-08:00

A Victory Garden

By Carol A Hill

Tip! It's smart gardening to learn what the advantages and disadvantages would be if you were to choose certain roses over others.
In the early nineteen forties,women shopped with ration stamps
that limited the amount of groceries they bought in order to
support the war effort. To supplement the their meager rations,
they grew vegetable gardens in spare plots of land and also in
their own back yards. Neat rows of lettuce, tomatoes, yellow wax
beans, green onions, cabbage and yellow squash were planted
everywhere. Since the ingredients for the meals depended upon
what was available in the cupboard and the garden, the home
cooks really had to stretch their imaginations.
For a late afternoon lunch, leaves of cabbage were stuffed with
ground meat, uncooked rice, stewed tomatoes and a pinch of sugar.
Tip! Sunflowers � There's no better flower for your garden than the sunflower. Sunflowers have yellowish-orange petal with a black circle in the middle.
Stuffed Cabbage Leaves
(Serves 8)
8-large cabbage leaves, washed and left whole
1-lb. ground meat
1-cup rice, uncooked
1-can stewed tomatoes, chopped
1/4-tsp sugar
1/2-cup onion, chopped
salt and pepper to taste
Directions: In a large pot boil enough water to cover the cabbage
leaves. Turn down the heat and add the cabbage leaves for three
minutes until the leaves are softened. Into a large bowl: mix the
ground meat,the uncooked rice,the onion and the sugar.Season with the salt and the pepper. After the ground meat mixture is well combined. Spoon enough of the meat mixture into the cabbage
leaves. After they are filled with the meat mixture. Roll each
filled leaf and secure it with a toothpick. Line a baking dish with the stuffed leaves and pour the stewed tomatoes over them.
Bake at 350 degrees for forty-five minutes to an hour. Serve with a bowl of lettuce and tomatoes with a sweet boiled vinegar
salad dressing.
Tip! Represent the space element by an open area in the middle of you garden. It can either be a patio or grass.
Boiled Vinegar Salad Dressing
1-cup white vinegar
1/2-cup sugar
1/2-cup water
salt and pepper to taste
Directions: In a saucepan: add the white vinegar, the sugar and the water on medium-high heat. Stir frequently until the vinegar
the sugar and the water are well combined. Let cool. Pour the salad dressing over the lettuce and the tomato and combine them
until the salad is well coated with the dressing.
Yellow squash is so versatile to prepare. It is good steamed with
some butter and nutmeg, baked into a favorite casserole or sliced
thin and dipped into an egg wash, then rolled into a seasoned corn meal and flour mixture and dropped into a pan of hot vegetable oil.
Fried Yellow Squash
4 or 5 yellow squash, slice thin
2-eggs,beaten
1/4-cup water
1-cup flour
3/4-cup corn meal
Salt and pepper to taste
3-cups vegetable oil
Tip! When choosing plants for your garden, remember crops that are suited to your soil and climate will be more resistant to problems. If you experiment with exotics, be prepared to give them more care.
Directions: Beat the eggs with the water. Soak the slices of the yellow squash in the egg wash mixture. Soak the squash for fifteen minutes. In a bowl: mix the yellow corn meal, the flour,
and the salt and pepper. Evenly coat the slices of yellow squash
in the seasoned corn meal and flour mixture. In a deep fryer:
Gently drop the coated slices of the squash into the hot vegetable oil and fry until they are golden brown.
Tip! Cleaning-up the garden. Harvest warm-season crops such as tomatoes even though they are still green.
Crispy yellow wax beans have never failed to please the most
finickey appetites with bacon added to them. For the carb conscious, olive oil is substituted.
Yellow Wax Beans With Bacon
2-lbs. fresh yellow wax beans, parboiled
2-slices bacon, cut into pieces
1/4-cup onion, chopped
Directions: In a skillet, cook the bacon pieces until they are
done. Remove them from the skillet and set them aside. Saute the
onion in the bacon grease, or olive oil until it is transparent.
Add the parboiled wax beans and the bacon pieces. Coat the wax
beans evenly with the bacon grease or the olive oil.
When the sugar ration ran low, a sugarless lemon pie was invented
for those times when a dessert was needed before the ration stamps ran out.
Lemon Victory Pie
(8-inch pie)
Graham cracker crust
16-graham crackers
2-Tlb sugar
1/4-cup of butter or margarine, melted
Directions: Combine the ingredients and press them in a eight inch pie pan. Bake in a 150 degree oven for ten minutes.
Filling:
1-1/3-cups sweetened condensed milk
1-tsp. grated lemon rind
1/2-cup lemon juice
2-egg yolks, mixed well until thickened
Directions:Combine the ingredients. Heat the oven to 350 degrees.
Meringue:
2-egg whites
pinch of salt
1/4-tsp vanilla
sugar to stiffen egg whites
Tip! Evaluating your garden design. Before you start winterizing your garden, take a few minutes to review what worked and what didn't and make note of any areas that you would like to change in the spring.
Directions: Mix the egg whites in a medium bowl add the salt and
the vanilla. Set the mixer at high speed adding the sugar a little at a time. When the egg whites have formed white peaks,
spoon them on top of the pie mixture. Bake the pie for ten to
fifteen minutes. Serve cooled.
Cooking since the age of fifteen, the author has always loved
learning food history.

2006-11-15T05:12:00.000-08:00

Roasted Pumpkin Seeds are a Garden Bonus

By John Lenaghan

Tip! Pull weeds. If weeds grow in the midst of your wildflower garden, pull them by hand before they have a chance to flower and populate.
The reward of gardening is enjoying the fruits and vegetables of your labor. You may be overlooking a delicious and nutritious crop that right under your hoe - roast pumpkin seeds.
Pumpkins have been a popular part of vegetable gardens for centuries. The word comes from the Greek word "pompon," which means large melon. Native Americans ate roasted pumpkin and wove dried strips into mats. Today, we include pumpkins in our vegetable gardening mainly for their decorating and pie value. We often throw the seeds away.
Next time you carve a jack-'o-lantern or cook a pumpkin for pie filling, save those seeds. They make nutty-flavored snacks that are a good source of protein, fiber, iron and phosphorous.
Tip! Choose a sunny, well-drained gardening site. Most wildflowers need at least five to eight hours of sunlight a day and well-drained soil.
Below is an easy, fun recipe for roasting pumpkin seeds. The whole family will enjoy making and eating this new treat from the garden. Some people like to wash the seeds before roasting. Others leave any pumpkin particles for added flavor and nutrition.
Roasted Pumpkin Seeds
2 Cups Pumpkin Seeds
1 Quart Water
2 Tablespoons salt
1 Tablespoon Melted Butter or Vegetable Oil
1. Preheat the oven to 250 degrees
2. Bring water and salt to a boil. Add the seeds and boil for 8 to 10 minutes
3. Drain the seeds in a colander and spread them on a paper towel to dry.
4. Melt the butter. Put the dry seeds and butter in a large bowl and toss until the seeds are evenly coated.
5. Spread the seeds in a single layer on a cookie sheet.
6. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes until they reach a light, golden brown color. Stir seeds every 10 minutes during cooking.
7. Cool the seeds completely before eating.
Tip! Sunflowers � There's no better flower for your garden than the sunflower. Sunflowers have yellowish-orange petal with a black circle in the middle.
You can remove the hulls from the seeds after roasting or eat the seeds hull and all. Keep roasted seeds in airtight containers.
Gardening Tip: Set a few seeds aside before roasting. These free seeds will start next year's pumpkin patch.
John Lenaghan writes about vegetable gardening for http://www.vegetable-gardening-4u.com where he provides valuable tips and advice about seed companies, garden accessories, container gardening and other vegetable gardening topics.

2006-11-14T05:15:00.000-08:00

My House and Garden

By Micaela Ferrari

Tip! Pull weeds. If weeds grow in the midst of your wildflower garden, pull them by hand before they have a chance to flower and populate.
A Fondue Party is ideal for an informal evening with friends. This popular dish comes from Switzerland where villagers in the mountains had to rely on local produce, like cheese, wine and home baked bread during the long winter month. The name fondue comes from the French word "fondre", which means to melt or blend. Fondue meaning melted cheese in wine. You will need a chafing dish over a spirit stove and long fondue forks. Place the heated fondue dish on the spirit stove in the center of your table and hand out a fork to all your guests. Everyone spears a piece of bread onto the long fork, dips it into the fondue, turns it once or twice before eating it. In no time the ice will be broken and the party in full swing with everyone trying not to drop the bread form the fork. The custom is that anyone who looses a piece of bread in the dish must supply a bottle of wine. Even the experts find it hard, especially after a few glasses of Kirsch. Fondue Parties in Switzerland are a lot of fun with its warm atmosphere.
Tip! The final growth height of a rose should be considered as it would be unattractive to grow roses that are higher than the area of the garden that it grows in. Some roses can grow to be as high as 20 feet.
Lots of other delicious variations exist now, e.g. Fondue Bourgignonne made with Fillet Steak accompanied with Mustard, Tatar, Bearnaise, Tomato or Curry sauce and so on.
Swiss Cheese Fondue:
Ideally a rustic wine and small glasses of Kirsch and a crispy salad are served with this. Suitable for Vegetarians.
350g ( 12oz ) Emmenthal Cheese, grated
350g ( 12oz ) Gruy�re Cheese, grated
45cl ( 3/4 pint ) dry white wine
3 tablespoons of Kirsch
3-4 flat teaspoons of corn starch
grated nutmeg to taste
1 clove of garlic
pepper to taste
crusty firm bread, like French bread, cut into bite size pieces
rub the fondue pan with garlic
pour in the wine and heat very gently over the cooker
Tip! Prepare the soil for early spring seeding. Turn over the garden soil late in the season while amending with organic matter such as leaves, compost, or well-rotted manure.
when hot add a small amount of cheese at a time, stirring continually
bring it gently to bubbling point
add the kirsch mixed with the corn starch
let it simmer for another 3 minutes, stirring continually
now place it on your fondue stand with a lit flame and serve
Tip: corn starch is a white type thickening flour and not the yellow maize variety
About the Author
Mica loves cooking and baking and has her own website where you can find a lot more mouthwatering recipes.
http://www.myhouseandgarden.com

2006-11-13T05:11:00.000-08:00

Italian Cooking Starts in the Garden!

By Sharon Sanders

Tip! Sunflowers � There's no better flower for your garden than the sunflower. Sunflowers have yellowish-orange petal with a black circle in the middle.
Il giardino . The garden. It's the base for good Italian meals.
Travelers back from Italy often comment on how much better the food tastes in Italy. The flavorful varieties of fruits and vegetables are a big part of the taste gap. Produce that is grown close to where it is cooked and savored just tastes better.
Perhaps we can't all live and eat in Italy but we can cook and eat closer to the Italian ideal by shopping for ingredients in local farmers' markets or supermarkets that feature regional produce. With more and more Americans desiring to eat the healthy Mediterranean way, farmers are growing Tuscan black kale, Florence fennel, radicchio, and much much more.
Tip! Keep garden beds covered with shredded leaves to minimize the risk of soil erosion and nutrient run-off.
What to do with all those wonderful vegetables in your pantry? Follow the Tuscan example. La Ribollita is a classic Tuscan dish. It means reboiled which doesn't sound appetizing in English but the taste is pure comfort. The dish started as a clever way to make a new dish of dry bread and leftover minestrone. Don't be spooked by the ingredient list; the soup comes together fast and just simmers on its own. You'll want to make the soup several days ahead so the flavors blend. The final step is baking the soup and bread in a lasagne pan to create a satisfying casserole.
Growing & Enjoying Your Own Rose Garden. Everything you need to know to get your own rose garden established and thriving.
La Ribollita
Serves 6 to 8
Extra-virgin olive oil
2 ounces pancetta or bacon, finely chopped (see note)
1 red onion, chopped
2 ribs celery, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
3 large cloves garlic, minced
2 dried bay leaves
1 tablespoon dried thyme leaves
1 fresh or dried hot red chile
2 cans (15 1/2 ounces each) cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
1 can (14 1/2 ounces) diced tomatoes, with juice
2 cans (14 1/2 ounces each) chicken broth
2 cups water
8 ounces Tuscan black cabbage or kale, cut in slivers
Salt and ground black pepper
1 loaf (about 12 ounces) rustic bread, cut in 1/2-inch thick slices, dried for 24 hours or toasted
1 cup (4 ounces) grated Parmesan cheese
Tip! Represent the space element by an open area in the middle of you garden. It can either be a patio or grass.
Cook 2 tablespoons oil and pancetta or bacon in a large pot over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes or until pancetta is crisp. Add the onion, celery, carrot, garlic, bay leaves, thyme and chile. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, over medium heat for 10 minutes. Add the beans and stir to combine with the vegetables. Add the tomatoes with juice, broth, and water. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low. Cover partially and simmer for 45 minutes or until the carrots are softened.
Add the Tuscan black cabbage or kale. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover partially and simmer for 15 minutes. Cool completely then refrigerate for up to 3 days.
Tip! Prepare the soil for early spring seeding. Turn over the garden soil late in the season while amending with organic matter such as leaves, compost, or well-rotted manure.
To serve: Reheat the soup over medium heat. Remove and discard the bay leaves and chile.
Preheat the oven to 350� F. Coat a 5-quart lasagne baking dish with no-stick spray. Ladle half of the soup into the dish. Cover with a layer of bread slices. Ladle on the remaining soup. With a knife or fork, cut through the bread slices so soup can soak into them.
Bake for 30 minutes or until the mixture is bubbling and bread starts to rise souffle-like. Sprinkle on the Parmesan. Broil, 6 inches from the heat source, for about 5 minutes or until top is sizzling. Remove and allow to sit for 10 few minutes before spooning into pasta plates.
Tip! The English Garden Style - This style emphasizes on the harmony between the house's architecture and the garden.
Serve with a mixed greens salad, followed by a winter fruit salad of diced apples, pears, kiwi, and oranges tossed with some lemon juice and sugar.
Note: Pancetta is a cured and seasoned pork belly similar to bacon but not smoked.It is sold in supermarkets and Italian specialty stores.
Sharon Sanders, author and media personality, is the author of Cooking Up an Italian Life: Simple Pleasures of Italy in Recipes and Stories. She contributes to Cooking Light and other national publications and also lectures on the Italian lifestyle and teaches Italian cooking. She is a Certified Culinary Professional and publishes a free electronic newsletter from her Web site http://www.simpleitaly.com.

2006-11-11T05:08:00.000-08:00

New Jersey Real Estate - The Garden State

By Raynor James

Tip! Color may seem trivial at first glance, but it's usually an important factor to those that want to grow roses. Usually it is simply a matter of personal preference, but you may want to try creating a complimentary color palette for your rose garden.
New Jersey is often miscast as a less than nice place to live, when the truth is the garden state motto is accurate. New Jersey real estate prices reflect Atlantic Ocean influences.
New Jersey
With the crooning of Bruce Springsteen, New Jersey has been depicted as a non-descript home of industry. Take a ride on the turnpike in the north and you'll agree. Simply put, parts of the state are unattractive, but much of the rest is very nice. New Jersey is that odd location where you want to avoid the bigger cities and live in the smaller towns. They represent gems on the eastern seaboard with low prices relative to the region. Move to New Jersey and you'll be close to areas such as the gambling at Atlantic City, beaches on the Atlantic and large cities such as New York City.
Tip! Represent the space element by an open area in the middle of you garden. It can either be a patio or grass.
Princeton
Home to the famous and respected Princeton University, the town of Princeton is simply beautiful. You'll find older historic homes, castle-like buildings and green, overgrown landscaping. While this is definitely a college town, the atmosphere fall more towards the study of intellectual discourse than toga parties. Home to such notable individuals as Albert Einstein, Princeton is a surprisingly quiet and a good place to raise a family.
Atlantic City
If gambling is your game, Atlantic City is the spot on the East Coast. Sitting on the coast, this is the home of over the top casinos with a heavy influence of Trump. To be honest, Atlantic City is a take it or leave it place. The city has gone through major economic swings and is heavily influenced by the seasons. The winters can be depressing, but spring and summer can be a hoot with a mass of tourist livening up the area. Atlantic City is often described as a poor man's Las Vegas, but it is more akin to the Reno area without the skiing and mountains.
Tip! It's smart gardening to learn what the advantages and disadvantages would be if you were to choose certain roses over others.
New Jersey Real Estate
New Jersey real estate prices are all over the map. Prices range from the mid $250,000s to as high as the $900,000s for homes. You'll need to research the prices in your area of interest.
On a positive note, appreciation rates are strong in New Jersey. On average, real estate appreciated at a rate of over 16 percent in 2005.
Raynor James is with the FSBO site - FSBOAmerica.org - homes for sale by owner. Visit our home buying page to view and buy New Jersey real estate.

2006-11-10T05:08:00.000-08:00

Computer Geeks and Garden Gnomes

By Andy Staveley

Tip! Cut down on Big Toys - Children's outdoor toys, such as swings, slides etc; can take up loads of room in the garden, and they're not always very attractive. Look for something a little less permanent.
First and foremost before I begin my ranting it is worth mentioning that there are many very helpful and considerate people out there in the cyber wilderness who devote much of their time to providing open source and free scripts of all variations from PHP, CGI and Java to name but a few. They provide dedicated support, do not insist on payment, and spend much of their free time helping you avoid having to part with your hard earned cash to get free programs and scripts up and running on your websites.
Now, that having been said I have just spent an enlightening couple of days installing several PHP and CGI scripts, mainly because whilst I have some experience of installations, the only true way to become fast and efficient with all this geeky stuff is to install, de install and test a variety of applications and programs yourself.
Tip! Cosmos - These flowers have the ability to grow anywhere from 12 inches to 4 feet tall. Cosmos are perfect for cutting gardens and are often picked out of gardens and used in flower arrangements.
After two days and over a hundred scripts I am left drained. Half of the scripts I just dumped immediately due to poor or non-existent documentation and bad layout of files. It amazes me that some quite intricate scripts are left high and dry without any installation documents at all. In other words, the author spent days programming and putting together complicated scripts, to fail miserably on poor or non existent documentation. Aside from this, some sites you visit in order to download this material insist on blitzing you with numerous pop ups - the end result of which is neither good for the person visiting the website or the website owner. Both part very quickly. Perhaps I am intolerant but any sign of boxes leaping up in the air and blind adverts and I am gone. I know I am not alone.
Tip! The Formal/Informal Garden Style - This style often comes with a brick walkway that exudes formality. This walkway leads to the rear with a circle of plants.
Add to this the frustration of taking the time to read through endless documents and CGI scripts on websites only to find that when you click on a link for more information or a download you find it is dead, the site under maintenance or what was advertised as free is not actually free. Either that or you go to the extreme of getting a script working only to find the writers advertisement popping up all over the place to the extent it warrants dumping the script. Yes I know you can remove it for a fee but why didn't you tell me that before I installed it?
Tip! Keep your garden simple. Often simple themes work best and feel more spacious.
Even quite clear documentation often omits what is to the writer an obvious requirement but not something that he or she chooses to share with their hapless user - classic example might be forgetting to mention that an SQL database is needed. Hardly a minor omission.
At the height of one frustrating and particularly badly written install attempt I imagined myself as John Cleese with a garden gnome under my arm hunting for the writer. Anonymity on the internet does has its advantages in this case.
Tip! The English Garden Style - This style emphasizes on the harmony between the house's architecture and the garden.
Now, I know you will be cynical and say that most of this is down to the fact that many script writers are hoping you will pay them to install their scripts for you, indeed many do offer installation services. This really is a bad way of advertising your services. There are plenty of people who will have trouble with the easiest installs and if you wrote clear and concise documentation which any user can see is genuinely comprehensive, you are more likely to secure customers as a result of failed installs.
During this laborious exercise we went through scripts of all kinds some of which include; online photo albums, content management systems, member login and authentication scripts, virtual postcards, email programs, hosting scripts, live helper, communication, e commerce, shopping carts, quiz and chat programs to name but a few. We also purchased 3 scripts. Only one of those free scripts was simple to install and marginally better than the free versions available. Paying money does not necessarily mean better service. In fact one photo album provider charging around $30 dollars per script provided bad install information and less than helpful advice, immediately deleting anything that mentioned install problems from his forum.
Tip! Know what you want to get rid of/or disguise in your garden � eg, that ugly rear fence needs cloaking or finally ridding yourself of that terrible shed, which blocks all your light.
It has been an experience. If none of this has meant anything to you and you have no idea about scripting or installing scripts then consider yourself fortunate and leave it to the geeks if you are able.
For those of you that regularly dive into scripting for your websites - here is a useful tip that saved us no end of time and frustration. The minute you come up against bad scripting, bad documentation or difficult to install scripts - trash them, ditch them and move on. There are plenty of others. Leave the tricky badly written stuff to the real hardcore freaks.
Birmingham UK Com. For some free E Books visit:
http://www.birminghamuk.com/shop/upload/.

2006-11-09T05:08:00.000-08:00

Weeding The VoIP Garden

By Scott Sowle

Tip! It's smart gardening to learn what the advantages and disadvantages would be if you were to choose certain roses over others.
Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) is fast becoming the way for the world to communicate and the VoIP market jungle is full of weeds wanting to become trees.
VoIP has been around for the public market since 2002 and you can only find about a handful of stand alone VoIP service providers. Vonage who is the king of marketing still clings to its "Woo Hoo" song and their ever rising marketing costs and lower profits. Packet8, the old pioneer of Internet phone service, is chugging away while building up consumer confidence and new innovative VoIP products. We see Lingo, who likes to push their International calling plans, struggling to regain ground on the rest of field, and the new kid in the garden, SunRocket, who brings their trusty Bottom-Line pricing along for the new growth of VoIP. These and a few other companies are around for the long haul.
Tip! Cleaning-up the garden. Harvest warm-season crops such as tomatoes even though they are still green.
It is important in these early growth stages to weed out those who are trying to choke out the main growth. These are VoIP providers who are only in for the early money grabbing glory days and will die off when the heat starts to beat down on them.
If you are looking for a new VoIP service provider you need to take a few hours and weed out the jungle. You can check out the online VoIP news reports for their achievements and future plans, find and study the VoIP forums. Internet phone providers who have little or no news at all are mainly the ones that will die out. You'll find that the strong growing VoIP companies are bringing new and improve products and services to the field everyday. Researching like this can be tough going and very time consuming.
Tip! Keep your garden simple. Often simple themes work best and feel more spacious.
Another option is to locate an independent VoIP, broadband or telecommunication consultant who is consistently researching and learning about the new VoIP services and products offered. These consultants are not being paid by just one provider or company to sell only their products. They are able to give you unbiased advice concerning the services you are considering. They can tell you the pros and cons of each individual provider even for those who they don't represent.
Using an independent telecom consultant will ease the pain and time in finding that right VoIP or broadband phone provider especially in this weed choked Internet phone garden. An independent consultant will be able to inform you of what all of the top VoIP providers are doing with new services, products and future plans for the leading VoIP solutions. The great thing is you get all of your information in a few minutes and its free (Do Not Pay For Consulting).
For more information on VoIP services, products and news contact: http://www.altabroadband.bravehost.com

2006-11-08T05:13:00.000-08:00

The Walled Garden

By Kyle Why

Tip! The Formal Style uses lots of straight lines and perfect geometrical shapes. Orderly arrangement of plants instead of random positioning is employed, and close arrangement and pruning is used on many landscaped gardens with this style.
For those of you who aren't familiar, the walled garden is a term used to describe the situation where carriers control all content that goes to their device. Being able to sell directly to consumers is a very costly service that few can afford.
The walled garden is dealing some serious blows to the industry right now. Depending on what carrier you're with, even if you buy a game from a site that sends you an SMS with an html link to get the game, some carriers will go as far as to block this SMS link or the download. This makes absolutely sure that the games can only be purchased through their deck. The fact that these small start up game developers aren't able to sell directly to the consumer, means that they have an incredibly hard time getting their games out. This process is really stifling industry growth.
Tip! Think about your budget as most people underestimate the value of their garden and many people make costly mistakes by neglecting their garden.
Let's just say that you are one of the lucky publishers who gets their game onto a game deck. The only way to sell your game on that deck is to hope that somebody knows of your game and is looking for it specifically, or that they will select your game based on its catchy title. If the title is your only selling potential, then you better make sure that the game is called "Aabaa's Adventure" because chances are that the customer won't be searching through the entire game deck. Too bad for the developer who makes an amazing game but calls it "Zworf" (I don't know why you would call it that anyways).
Okay, so you've got a good game and it has a catchy name at the beginning of the alphabet. What other problems will you incur? Firstly, the waiting times to get your game on a carrier's deck are incredibly long compared to the time it takes to actually develop the game. It's common for a game that took 3 months to develop to wait 8 months before their game is on the deck. This causes serious cash flow issues.
Tip! Trellises, cages or poles will be needed for tomatoes, cucumbers, beans and other vines. Patio gardeners can also take advantage of permanent features, such as fences and railings, to support their plants.
Speaking of long waiting times, let's just say you accidentally shipped the game with a bug. We all know this would NEVER happen (wink), but just hypothetically what if? It would take a relatively long time to get your game updated because you have to go through the bureaucracy of the carrier system. Not only that, but everyone who has the unupdated games will have to repurchase the software because their carriers will demand they buy the game again.
It's obvious why carriers are so reluctant to give up the market to more direct to consumer publishers. Although the revenue they make from game sales is relatively minor to their other competencies; carriers still receive huge revenues from controlling all content that moves through their phone. It is very hard to convince them to give up these profits in exchange for better gaming. This is not to say that it will never happen. Developers such as Gameloft have negotiated with carriers to be allowed the right to offer direct to consumer sales off their website in exchange for a limited time of exclusivity on the carrier's game deck. These developers have demonstrated that negotiating direct to consumer sales can be a very successful part of a developer's business strategy. We will never see the end of the walled garden in North America until the mobile game industry bands together and forces carriers to open their decks. Europe and Asia have pioneered this movement and America can benefit from similar action.
Tip! Choose a sunny, well-drained gardening site. Most wildflowers need at least five to eight hours of sunlight a day and well-drained soil.
QuicklyBored is a blog that reviews mobile games as well as reports on the mobile games industry. Visit us at http://www.quicklybored.com

2006-11-07T05:10:00.000-08:00

Using Your Wooden Garden Shed As Your New Office

By David Smithson

Tip! Wild Corner - I know this may be hard if you like a neat and tidy garden, but leaving a wild patch can be very entertaining and visually very pleasing. Nettles and other wildflowers attract butterflies and bees, and it's often suprising how delicate and colourful wildflowers can be when allowed to grow in their own space.
Not everyone has space in their homes for an office, though. For others, a home office is the biggest nightmare, as you can never get away from the paperwork. Garden offices are becoming a good option. And from just a few thousand pounds you can set yourself up with something that's insulated, double-glazed, and has all the electricity and telephone connections you'll ever need. New technologies like wireless broadband are also contributing to the trend.
Garden wooden sheds will require some initial investment, but unless you have the room in your home already, the cost and effort of construction is usually cheaper than other options like a loft conversation or extension. The other great thing about garden constructions is that you won't usually need local authority planning permission if it's made from timber - unless it's a fairly big building (over four metres tall), it's close to the house (less than five metres away), it takes up over half of your garden, or you live in a conservation area. The other reason you might need permission is if you're going to run a business from the space rather than use it just as an office.
Tip! Know what you want to get rid of/or disguise in your garden � eg, that ugly rear fence needs cloaking or finally ridding yourself of that terrible shed, which blocks all your light.
It might also be easier to claim back VAT on the building costs of your garden office than if you were converting part of your home. When it comes to the latter, it can be difficult to prove you'll just be using the space for your work rather than extra living room. As the garden office is distinctly separate from the home, it makes it easier for you to prove this to the tax man. It might be worth informing HM Revenue and Customs in advance, getting agreement before you build. Reasonable decoration will be taken into consideration - we'd suggest no interior designers!
Although garden offices are usually transportable if you move, they can also add significant value to your property. Outdoor spaces are quite sought-after, whether they're used as an office, a relaxing area or place for entertaining. Like an extension to the home, it could be a worthwhile investment in itself.
David Smithson writes for Jacksons Garden Supplies, a UK based company specialising in wooden garden sheds, garden summer houses & concrete garages.
Tip! Color may seem trivial at first glance, but it's usually an important factor to those that want to grow roses. Usually it is simply a matter of personal preference, but you may want to try creating a complimentary color palette for your rose garden.
For more information visit Jacksons Garden Supplies.

2006-11-06T05:09:00.000-08:00

How to Develop Sales like a Garden of Profits

By Steve Martinez

Tip! Sunflowers � There's no better flower for your garden than the sunflower. Sunflowers have yellowish-orange petal with a black circle in the middle.
The season for planting is in the air and many of us will be toiling the soil and planting gardens during the next few months. With this in mind, there are many similarities to gardening and sales. Here are a few strategies to apply.
Proper Selection Makes a Happy Gardener
Normally, we select our garden plants based on what we love to eat. If we love tomatoes we should plant them. There is nothing like picking a ripe tomato off the vine and eating it. The same holds true for customers. If we prefer accounts that require frequent production of blue widgets in large quantities we should select and pursue accounts that require them. The same joy of eating a fresh ripe tomato will be felt when a blue widget account is landed. It is up to sales management to help sales people plant the right seeds for our needs, wants and profits. Otherwise, it will be a painful growing season for everyone. Imagine what it would be like if we hated beets and all that was planted in our garden was beets. Now that would be an ugly and long season.
Training and Development Improves Performance
As tomatoes grow they need support or they will flop to the ground and our fruit will spoil. A trellis needs to be constructed to keep the vine growing the way we want it to grow. Constant attention to the plant and working the vines through the trellis will keep our tomato vine healthy for a long growing season. The same is true with our sales team. They require training and a system of learning new skills to keep them abreast of opportunities for sales. If we have areas we want to grow the business towards, we must train our salespeople to understand the best ways to sell the services we offer. Keeping a sales team trained requires constant interaction and tools for development. Access to a resource library with audio and video sales training tools for this purpose will aid in development.
Tip! Wild Corner - I know this may be hard if you like a neat and tidy garden, but leaving a wild patch can be very entertaining and visually very pleasing. Nettles and other wildflowers attract butterflies and bees, and it's often suprising how delicate and colourful wildflowers can be when allowed to grow in their own space.
Sales Territory Plot Planning
We should plan our garden plot and select the best environment for growth. We shouldn't plant tomatoes in poor soil such as hard clay because it inhibits growth. Tomatoes are acid loving plants and require rich soil with good drainage. An extreme example would be to plant flowers in the desert sand of Mohave. Certainly they wouldn't get the water they require and the desert sun would burn them to a crisp. The same holds true for business accounts. We wouldn't go into residential areas to find prime accounts for business. Using a target account system for growth such as SIC codes is a more efficient method of account planning. You don't have to look far in your own business. One of the best places to look is in your account files to establish target customer profiles you prefer. This method allows you to duplicate your existing success.
Tip! Evaluating your garden design. Before you start winterizing your garden, take a few minutes to review what worked and what didn't and make note of any areas that you would like to change in the spring.
Drip Marketing and Watering Improves Growth
Watering a garden too much or too little will inhibit growth. For example if we water a tomato plant too often, yellow leaves will form and the fruit won't develop properly. Too little water and the plant will wither and dry. It is the proper balance of water timed appropriately that will yield the best fruit. In outside sales our similarity would be to manage our contacts appropriately. ACT or any contact system will help manage this. We must handle our follow-up according to the best practices of sales. Business accounts can be contacted in different ways and we should use as many as we can. Our tools for a follow-up schedule should include personal visits, e-mail, telephone, fax and personalized notes or letters. Using only one method is not as constructive. Additionally, high profile or our high profit accounts should receive better attention because they yield the most fruit for us. This is where a key customer account program can help.
Tip! The Formal/Informal Garden Style - This style often comes with a brick walkway that exudes formality. This walkway leads to the rear with a circle of plants.
Remember, gardens and sales both take time. You can't expect to eat salad or enjoy sales tomorrow, if you don't plant and nurture your garden today.
Steve Martinez implements sales management strategies with a focus on automating sales for printing organizations. Selling Magic teaches businesses how to automate and customizing ACT or Outlook with the best practices of sales management while integrating email marketing and technology for greater profits. http://www.sellingmagic.com

2006-11-05T05:32:00.000-08:00

The Flower Garden and New Age Piano Music

By Edward Weiss

Tip! The Oriental Style - It is often the kind of garden found in houses with small backyards. It uses rocks, evergreens and water, and a wide variety of plants to create several angles with this style.
If you've ever looked at a flower garden, not only its beauty may have captivated you, but also its overall arrangement.
There may have been some tulips or roses combined with other flowers or plants.
You may also have stood there looking it over. Maybe you started on one side and your eye moved down or vice-versa. Now, music making is a lot like flower arranging. You combine different elements to make a pleasing whole.
It is a natural tendency of the human mind to create order out of chaos and art from nothing. What is pleasing to the listening ear is symmetry. The flower arrangement captivates, not only because of its great beauty, but because it has been composed and arranged to a pleasing whole - something the eye and the mind can grasp hold of and ponder.
Tip! Water Gardening. Bring in pumps, drain, clean, refill (if necessary) and store tender water plants prior to freezing.
We walk away with a sense of completion because someone took the time to bring order into chaos. Someone arranged varying elements to create art. Now this is what musicians do whether they realize it or not. But instead of flowers, we use notes and chords. Instead of a vase, we use musical form to hold the notes and chords.
Music is a more difficult art because the elements are not as easily put together. Music is slippery and ephemeral but when we learn to use the tools of repetition and contrast, we begin to put some order into chaos. Chaos is good and has its place in improvisation, however, for those who wish to compose their own music, it's a good idea to learn the tools of the trade.
Tip! It's smart gardening to learn what the advantages and disadvantages would be if you were to choose certain roses over others.
The flower arranger must know how to create a balance between color and form - the overall look and feel of the arrangement. The composer must also create balance but uses musical materials - chords, notes, phrases, etc.
Then he puts it together into a framework. A flower arrangement can be big or small depending on the size of the vase. Similarly, a new age piano work can be long or short depending on the amount of contrast and repetition used.
Edward Weiss is a pianist/composer and webmaster of Quiescence Music's online piano lessons. He has been helping students learn how to play piano in the New Age style for over 14 years and works with students in private, in groups, and now over the internet. Stop by now at http://www.quiescencemusic.com/piano_lessons.html for a FREE piano lesson!

2006-11-03T05:07:00.000-08:00

Nurture Musical Talent as You Would Care for a New Garden

By Cynthia VanLandingham

Tip! Represent the space element by an open area in the middle of you garden. It can either be a patio or grass.
The modern world of high speed internet, microwave ovens, fast cars, and Television creates expectations of instant results that are neither realistic nor sustainable when it comes to learning a difficult instrument such as the piano. Children and sometimes parents expect overnight results. This perception of learning is based on what C. Wright Mills calls a Sociological Imagination, or what I call a shared illusion about reality, learned mainly from TV and the movies.
Here's an example. Ever watch the show "Friends." This show glorifies people in their 30s who still act like adolescents. Wait a minute, that's not really fair - my apologies. I know plenty of adolescents who are more responsible than the cast of characters in Friends. Sure. It's a cute show but think about its content? What message does it send to young people? Certainly not the message that hard work and sacrifice pays off.
Tip! When choosing plants for your garden, remember crops that are suited to your soil and climate will be more resistant to problems. If you experiment with exotics, be prepared to give them more care.
Learning to play the piano is more like the sustained effort of planning and growing your own garden, and then sharing your harvest with your family and friends. We have some blueberry plants growing in our back yard. They were very small when we first planted them, producing only a few berries. Now 15 years later, we harvest a freezer full of blueberries every summer! Many times we could have dug them up and planted some more attractive shrubs, but we always believed that one day they would grow into big blueberry "trees" and give us lots of yummy fruit. And now after years of care, they do.
Nurturing your child's or your own musical talent is a lot like growing a garden. It takes time and patience. As well as attention to the simple things, like coming to lessons each week, attending recitals, developing a practice routine, staying focused on your goals, and believing that one day your dream will come true.
Tip! Cosmos - These flowers have the ability to grow anywhere from 12 inches to 4 feet tall. Cosmos are perfect for cutting gardens and are often picked out of gardens and used in flower arrangements.
For great home piano activities parents can use to help children ages 5 to 11 develop their musical talent, visit Piano Adventure Bears Music Education Resources You'll find a treasure box filled with piano resources to create an exciting musical adventure for your child - right in your own home! Visit their website and subscribe to their f'ree internet newsletter so you can download f'ree piano sheet music and mp3s of original piano compositions.
These exciting stories, games, piano lessons, and inspirational gifts feature the Piano Adventure Bears, Mrs. Treble Beary and her new piano student, Albeart Littlebud. Young students follow along with Albeart to learn what piano lessons are all about in a fun way that kids readily understand appreciate. Click here to visit PianoAdventureBears.com For a wealth of information about piano lessons, visit tallypiano.com

2006-11-02T06:01:00.000-08:00

11 Alternative Garden Games

By Tom Schneider

Tip! Where animal manures are available, they are probably the best source of fertilizer and organic matter for the organic gardener. Use manure which has been aged for at least 30 days, or composted.
Tired of the same ol', same ol' when it come to entertaining your garden party guests? Weary of boring badminton and jarts? Croquet not your style? Then you're in the right spot! Here are games sure to make your next party the hit of the gardening social season!
Icebreakers

Game #1: The Gnat Slap

Equipment required: A garden of any size.

As your guests arrive, invite them for the obligatory 'stroll through the garden'. Tell them they are welcome to slap the gnats but only those gnats annoying another guest; never are they permitted to slap gnats hovering around their own eyes, nose, ears or mouth. The winner is the last guest standing. A great icebreaker!

Game #2: The 3-Legged Butterfly Chase

Equipment required: Rope or wire to bind legs.

This is lots of fun. Tightly bind two guests' legs together to make a three-legged contestant. Then tell them you'll unbind them only after they've captured a butterfly.
Tip: For a longer lasting game, declare the quarry to be a hummingbird.

Game #3: Competitive Weed Pulling

Equipment required: Weeds of any kind.

This is a great game to reward the hard working guest. Entrants don't eat until the entire garden is cleaned of weeds. Winner: The person with the most weeds eats first and most, and so on down the line. This game teaches the rewards of the Puritan work ethic.

Game #4: The Wasp Dodge

Equipment required: More wire for binding, an in-ground wasp nest or two (Yellow Jackets are the best!), a small amount of kerosene.

With hands tightly wired behind their backs, have your players stand in a circle around a wasp nest entrance. Irritate the wasps by sprinkling a little kerosene over the hole and oh, boy! Stand back! Entrants are judged on style, grace, self-defensive acrobatic movements and number of stings.

Tip! Containers - Collect large pots and grow plants you can move around the garden, every day if you like! Grow herbs and flowers and position sweet smelling plants on the patio or round your seating area. Strawberries grow very well in containers as do other useful plants.

Games to Play While the Frozen Turkey Cooks on the Charcoal Grill

Game #5: Watch the Lawn Go Dormant

Equipment required: A dry turf.

This is for those guests that had a poor showing in the other games. The winner is the person still awake when the lawn is actually declared dormant.

Game #6: Bobbing for Aquatic Insects

Equipment required: A stagnant water source such as a neglected pool, pond or bucket. Kids love this one!

The winner is whoever come up with the largest water strider. Incentive for the competitively spirited: Anyone bobbing to the bottom retrieving the hapless mouse that slipped in about a month ago qualifies for the National Bobb-Off!

Game #7: Slug Races
Equipment required: A slug for each guest.

We suggest two events: The 4" sprint and the 2-foot marathon. Guests may mark their slugs in any way they wish.
Tip 1: Use an air-horn to signify the start of the races. Slugs are hard of hearing.

Tip 2: Entrants in the "Watch the Lawn Go Dormant" game can play this game simultaneously.

Game #8: Hornet's Nest Pinata

Equipment required: 1 large hornet's nest, a stick long enough to reach the nest, a blindfold.

This game really livens things up after the slower pace of the slug races and helps work off dinner.

Game #9: Blindfolded Lawn Mowing

Equipment required: A power mower and the blindfold from the Hornet's Nest Pinata game if it isn't too bloody.

Everyone loves this sport! One by one guests are blindfolded and told to mow the grass. The winner is the contestant who runs over the fewest trees, shrubs, flowers, pets and other guests. Lotsa laughs!
Time Saving tip: Dial 911 before the game begins.

Games for After Dark

Tip! Build up the southwest area of your garden to produce the stabilizing force of the earth element. You can do this with a rock garden, tall trees and even a stone statue.

Game #10: Firefly Shooting
Equipment required: A BB gun for everyone.

After a fun day of activities and food, gather everyone in the center of the garden in a large circle to try their hand at nailing a few fireflies. The winner, and don't expect one, is anyone who actually knocks a lightening bug out of the sky. Time Saving tip: Dial 911 before the game begins.

Game #11: Feed the Mosquitos

Equipment required: Go figure.

Play this last game while lingering over "good-byes" in the garden.
When Tom Schneider isn't trying to find new guests to invite to his garden parties, he and his wife Deb are busy with their on-line machine embroidery design business, WindstarEmbroidery.com

2006-10-31T07:20:00.000-08:00

Granny's Almost Garden

By Marge Holley

Tip! Keep your garden simple. Often simple themes work best and feel more spacious.
I almost had a garden this year. Then the earwigs took over my lettuce. The grasshoppers confiscated all my zucchini and various other flying insects shared the sunflowers. The gophers leveled one row in an afternoon. They enjoyed a healthy salad. I did get one meal of peas and one helping of green beans. The produce that I ate cost me about six dollars a pound but the relaxation of working in my garden with grasshoppers slamming into my head is priceless.
The grandchild got a puppy last week. A cute, little untrained puppy. Now I have to be careful where I step walking through the house. It was bad enough when I had to get a pooper scooper for my lawn. But for the living room? Training Fido has become a family project. Cleaning up Fido's accidents seems to be my field of expertise. Conveniently no one notices or seems to be around at these critical times. Last year I inherited the job of cleaning the parakeet cage. Next I fed the bird and changed his water. He won't even sit on my finger. Ungrateful bird! I suspect Fido is leaning toward this sort of behavior. He barks at me every time I come home but if I'm in the kitchen cooking, his attitude is completely different. What's wrong with goldfish? They make such nice pets. They stay put; swim around in circles and have short life spans. By the time the newness wears off, they die.
Tip! Choose a sunny, well-drained gardening site. Most wildflowers need at least five to eight hours of sunlight a day and well-drained soil.
Personally I've always wanted a miniature horse. They will mow and fertilize the yard and are a nice size. They don't need a big barn and they are cute. If you change your mind, they have resale value. (signed practical Granny)
Granny Marge has just published her second humor book, Granny's Journal. She is a library director in a small town in the Northwest and turned 62 this year. She forgets a lot so if she repeats herself, please forgive her.

2006-10-24T05:08:00.000-07:00

Right Shed Fred - How To Choose The Right Wooden Shed For Your Garden

By David Smithson

Tip! Cut down on Big Toys - Children's outdoor toys, such as swings, slides etc; can take up loads of room in the garden, and they're not always very attractive. Look for something a little less permanent.
Wooden sheds seems to have picked up an old-man tag. There's nothing wrong with that, of course - we were really fond of Arthur Fowler in Eastenders; and if a guy wants to smoke his pipe away from the kids, why not? But, old men is not all that sheds are about. In fact, if you're looking for a shed, there are lots of different sizes and designs to choose from nowadays. And people use them for all sorts - including home offices.
Tip! Water Gardening. Bring in pumps, drain, clean, refill (if necessary) and store tender water plants prior to freezing.
So, what should you be thinking about if you're looking for the right construction? Here are a few pointers to set you on your way.
How much space have you got for your new wooden shed?
This might seem obvious�but it's also easy to forget. How much space have you got in your garden or yard? And you need to think about height as well as ground space.
Where will it go? Are you going to hide the wooden shed away or use it as a focal point? Wherever you're putting it, you should make sure the ground is level and dry. A gravel or concrete base is ideal - never straight onto grass, because the wood will most likely rot.
Tip! Choose a sunny, well-drained gardening site. Most wildflowers need at least five to eight hours of sunlight a day and well-drained soil.
What size shed? The size of shed will obviously depend on the amount of space you'll need and what you want to use it for. Are you wanting it for storing gardening equipment? Do you need space for small-scale gardening work, like potting plants? Or, will you be spending more time in there - if it's going to be a home office space, for instance?
Will you need windows? Again, the longer you're going to spend in there, the more likely you'll want to get something with windows. If you're only storing equipment, windows are not necessary - in fact, in terms of security, you're probably better with a shed you can't see into. Bear in mind, the quality of windows will differ between models - some will open and others will be fixed.
How secure does it need to be? Wooden sheds can resemble anything from a large cupboard to a miniture house. The larger versions tend to have stronger frames, use thicker wood and incorporate a sturdier door.
Tip! The Oriental Style - It is often the kind of garden found in houses with small backyards. It uses rocks, evergreens and water, and a wide variety of plants to create several angles with this style.
Do you want internal tables or shelves? Again, this will depend if you want to store certain equipment, or if you want to work in the shed.
How easy is it to assemble? You might want to ask how easy the shed you're eyeing will be to assemble. They look great in a shop, but not so great in flat-packs. The easiest ones to assemble are the those already constructed into panels - it means you don't have to do any cutting, installation of windows, or covering of the roof. Be honest, how good are your DIY skills?
Your Garden. Hundreds Of Easy To Follow Ideas, Tips and Shortcuts To Create The Perfect Garden.
Should you coat your wooden shed? Your shed should come with a guarantee, but you might still want to think about giving it a protective coating. If you're going to do this, it might be worth doing the work before you construct?
David Smithson writes for Jacksons Garden Supplies, a UK based company specialising in wooden garden sheds, garden summer houses & concrete garages.
Tip! Keep your garden simple. Often simple themes work best and feel more spacious.
For more information visit Jacksons Garden Supplies.

2006-10-23T05:11:00.000-07:00

Garden Party

By Renee Kirchner

Tip! Know what you want to get rid of/or disguise in your garden � eg, that ugly rear fence needs cloaking or finally ridding yourself of that terrible shed, which blocks all your light.
Celebrate a summer birthday with a garden party. This party may be held inside or out but it is best if some of the activities can be done outside. Have your guests dress in casual clothes so they can get messy.
INVITATIONS
You will need white and yellow construction paper, glue and some markers. Fold a piece of the white paper in half. Cut a flower out of the white paper being careful to leave two of the petals joined together. Cut out a yellow circle and glue in the center of your flower. Open the flower to write the invitation inside. Be sure to include your own name, date, address and R.S.V.P. and phone number inside the invitation.
Tip! Cleaning-up the garden. Harvest warm-season crops such as tomatoes even though they are still green.
DECORATIONS
Decorate the table with a flowered tablecloth. Use a tin watering can as a vase and place cut flowers in it for your centerpiece. Set new, clean garden tools on the table to use as serving spoons for sunflower seeds or for the fruit salad.
SEED PACKET NAPKIN RINGS
You will need cardboard tubes, construction paper, scissors, glue and packets of seeds. Cut a 2-inch section from a cardboard tube. Cover the section with construction paper. Glue one seed packet onto each napkin ring. Insert the napkins into the napkin rings and lay one at each place setting.
Tip! Choose a sunny, well-drained gardening site. Most wildflowers need at least five to eight hours of sunlight a day and well-drained soil.
MENU
Serve Garden Pizzas with fruit salad and sunflower seeds. For the grand finale, serve "Sunshine Punch" and Dirty Cupcakes.
GARDEN PIZZAS
Use refrigerated pizza dough to make individual pizzas. Let children create their own pizza. Supply them with tomato sauce, mozzerella cheese, and an assortment of veggies such as mushrooms, onions, and green peppers. Some of your party guests may prefer plain cheese pizza.
Tip! Avoid too much maintenance. Low maintenance gardens will cost less over the long term.
FRUIT SALAD
Mix together strawberries, cantaloupe, banana slices, or any other favorite fruit.
SUNSHINE PUNCH
Mix 2 liters of orange soda with one pint of vanilla ice cream.
DIRTY CUPCAKES
Bake cupcakes using your favorite cake mix. Frost the cupcakes with chocolate icing. Crumble crushed oreo cookies on top to make the cakes look dirty. Place gummy worms or gummy bugs on top for decoration.
Place a bowl of sunflower seeds or toasted pumpkin seeds in the center of the table as a snack for children.
ACTIVITIES
PIN THE BEE ON THE FLOWER
Using a poster size sheet of white construction paper, draw a large flower. Hang the poster up on a door or a wall before the party. Make a small bee out of construction paper for each of the children. Place a piece of tape on each of the bees. Have children line up one at a time, blindfold them and ask them to pin the bee on the flower. Give prizes to the children who get their bee in the correct place.
DECORATE TERRA COTTA POTS
Buy a 4" terra cotta pot for each of the children. Supply the children with paint, stickers, ribbons and glue and have them each decorate a pot. They will be able to take these home as party favors later.
Tip! Wild Corner - I know this may be hard if you like a neat and tidy garden, but leaving a wild patch can be very entertaining and visually very pleasing. Nettles and other wildflowers attract butterflies and bees, and it's often suprising how delicate and colourful wildflowers can be when allowed to grow in their own space.
PLANTING FLOWER SEEDS
Let the little gardeners plant flower seeds in their terra cotta pots. Have garden tools, dirt, flower seeds and a watering can available for them. Let them get messy since the invitation asked them to wear old clothes. If you have a small plot of dirt in the backyard let them plant a flower garden.
Home Vegetable Garden Secrets. Create a Stunning Vegetable Garden in Your Own Backyard.
BEAN BAG TOSS
Place dried beans into snack size zipper baggies to make beanbags. Use two large empty coffee cans as targets. Line the children up in two teams. Give each team five beanbags. The children on each team will take turns tossing the beanbags into the coffee cans. They each get five tosses. The team that gets the most beanbags into the target wins. Give out prizes to the winning team.
FAVORS
Guests can take home the flower seed packets from their napkin rings as well as the terra cotta pots they decorated. Other ideas are gummy worms, flower stickers, and gardening gloves.
Tip! Water Features - are becoming more and more popular and also more affordable. Create a water feature that will suit your garden.
Renee Kirchner is a parent, educator, and freelance writer who specializes in writing for children and parents. Visit her fun and informational blog for parents and their kids at http://www.family-friend.blogspot.com and find out more about Renee's writing services offered at http://www.lieurancegroup.blogspot.com or email her at renee.kirchner@usa.net to discuss possible writing projects.

2006-10-22T05:09:00.000-07:00

Chore No More: The Exercise Value of House and Garden Chores

By Arron Stewart

Tip! Cut down on Big Toys - Children's outdoor toys, such as swings, slides etc; can take up loads of room in the garden, and they're not always very attractive. Look for something a little less permanent.
Housework, it's a dirty job - but somebody's got to do it!
It can often be difficult to find the motivation to tackle all the little jobs around the house and garden, especially when we factor-in all the other demands on our time and attention. To make the idea even less attractive, our efforts around the house and garden often go unnoticed or unappreciated by others. No wonder most people detest chores.
There is however, a way you can develop a new appreciation for domestic duties. Instead of focusing on the chores themselves, think about the additional physical activity you will get from tackling all that dreaded scrubbing, vacuuming and gardening. You may not realize it, but many household chores actually count as moderate exercise, and some are easily as physically demanding as a brisk walk or jog. Out in the garden, the calorie-burning, muscle-building exercise value of chores can be even more astounding.
Tip! Have a big picture of your garden. What do you want your garden to look like and what sort of theme?
If you are concerned about your health and wellbeing, as we all should be, putting a bit more effort in around the home and garden can assist in increasing your overall levels of activity and supplement your typical exercise regime. Indeed, you might begin to see housework in a different light when you realize that it offers a rare chance to kill two birds with one stone. As you are about to discover, the exercise value of chores is greater than you think.
Estimated Calorie Expenditure in Household/Garden Chores
The following is the estimated average calorie expenditure for an individual performing house and garden chores. As it based on a great number of variables, it is impossible to define the exact calorie expenditure of any particular household chore. The values are listed per hour and per minute. Some other common forms of physical activity have been included so that you can draw comparisons.
For the record, light house or garden work requires relatively little movement and muscular effort. Moderate housework or gardening regards activity that significantly increases heart-rate and demands purposeful muscular effort, but can sustained for prolonged periods. Strenuous activity around the home or garden is highly demanding on the cardio-vascular, skeletal and muscular systems of the body, and cannot be sustained for long periods of time without regular rest and recuperation periods.
Tip! The Formal Style uses lots of straight lines and perfect geometrical shapes. Orderly arrangement of plants instead of random positioning is employed, and close arrangement and pruning is used on many landscaped gardens with this style.
Remember: Calories are a standard unit for energy measurement in nutrition/exercise science. From the scientific perspective, one calorie is the amount of heat needed to increase the temperature of one gram of water by one degree centigrade. From the lay point of view, calories represent the �fuel' the human body uses to perform all of its functions; such as breathing, digesting, circulating the blood, moving and generating muscular force.
-Estimated Calorie Expenditure in Household/Garden Chores-
Housework, Light - 140+ (/hour) 2.33+ (/min) *
Housework, Moderate - 180+ (/hour) 3.00+ (/min) *
Housework, Strenuous - 260+ (/hour) 4.33+ (/min)
Gardening, Light - 250+ (/hour) 4.16+ (/min) *
Gardening, Moderate - 350+ (/hour) 5.83+ (/min) *
Gardening, Strenuous - 500+ (/hour) 8.33+ (/min)
Golf - 200+ (/hour) 3.33+ (/min) *
Walking(3mph) - 250+ (/hour) 4.33+ (/min) *
Tennis - 350+ (/hour) 5.83+ (/min) *
Hiking - 400+ (/hour) 6.66+ (/min) *
Bicycling - 450+ (/hour) 7.50+ (/min) *
Jogging(5mph) - 500+ (/hour) 8.33+ (/min)
Tip! Rock Gardens - Rock gardens can take on different themes and colour schemes throughout the year with a little careful planning. There is again some heavy physical work involved when you're putting together your rock garden but well worth it in the end.
A New Perspective on Chores
The above information clearly shows that work around the house and garden stacks up quite favorably with other forms of activity we would more readily perceive as �real' exercise. We all recognize that chores can be effortful and tiring but, until now, you have probably never considered just how they compare as a form of exercise. The trick is to alter your mindset, moving away from old-fashioned notions that sports and outdoor recreation are the only �true' forms of physical exercise.
While this article is unlikely to make you want to rush away from the computer and power through your chores, it should be clear to you that there is actually a hidden value to those loathsome and laborious house and garden tasks. Many of us could benefit from increasing our daily levels of activity, and doing so could be as simple as tackling all those horrible jobs you have been putting off for weeks. Not only will your home be a safer, cleaner and more hospitable environment for the effort, but you will have clocked-up some significant exercise at the same time.
Tip! Containers - Collect large pots and grow plants you can move around the garden, every day if you like! Grow herbs and flowers and position sweet smelling plants on the patio or round your seating area. Strawberries grow very well in containers as do other useful plants.
Arron Stewart Is 26 years old, lives in Hamilton, New Zealand, and attends the University of Waikato as a graduate student in Sport & Leisure with an additional focus on Sociology and Human Resource Management. A website has been established featuring more information and selected articles of his work: http://www.geocities.com/arron_stew_79

2006-10-19T05:09:00.000-07:00

Holistic Skin Care - Regrowing The Garden Of Youth

By Rebecca Prescott

Tip! Represent the space element by an open area in the middle of you garden. It can either be a patio or grass.
To win the battle against the effects of time and the environment, we need to do more than just apply lotions and creams to our faces. No matter how sophisticated the ingredients grow, those anti aging creams only improve the appearance of the dead layers of skin on the surface. To reach the deeper, living cells, we need to nourish ourselves from within.
Juices are an great way to get vital antioxidants, phytonutrients, and vitamins in fruits and vegetables we normally would not eat regularly. For example, pomegranate juice has been found to prevent the thickening of the arteries if drunk daily, as well as slow down the oxidation of cholesterol. And new research indicates it may have a much stronger antioxidant effect than red wine and green tea. Beauty foods like these can be a very effective tool in improving the way our skin looks and feels.
Tip! Where animal manures are available, they are probably the best source of fertilizer and organic matter for the organic gardener. Use manure which has been aged for at least 30 days, or composted.
Antioxidants are an excellent way to slow down the aging process on our skin. There are a variety of antioxidants found in fruit and vegetables. These include polyphenols, flavanoids, and proanthocyanadins. Proanthacyanadins help capillary walls stay strong, which is important in making sure all the right nutrients and oxygen get to our cells. If our cells are starving because of nutrient transportation problems, they are not going to be healthy, or look good. Blueberries and blackberries are rich sources of proanthocyanadins, so that's a great excuse to make these delicious fruits part of a regular diet. If you can't get fresh berries, or they're too expensive, try frozen berries as they still retain their nutritional value.
Tip! Think about your budget as most people underestimate the value of their garden and many people make costly mistakes by neglecting their garden.
Paul Bedson, who utilizes traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) in his approach to the body, suggests these juices for good skin health:
Carrot, celery and lemon juice

Cucumber, lettuce, and pineapple juice

Half a glass of cucumber juice with half a glass of water
TCM sees healthy skin function in relation to how well the other organs of elimination function. The skin is considered an organ of elimination as it excretes about one quarter of the body's wastes through perspiration. The other organs of elimination are the kidneys, the lungs, the liver and the bowels. The rationale behind considering the excretory organs as a whole when addressing skin health, is that if one of the organs is overloaded, or not doing its job properly, it throws the whole system of excretion out of balance, placing greater stress on the other eliminatory channels. So juices, food and supplements that support these other channels of elimination should also lead to a corresponding improvement in the skin.
Tip! Avoid too much maintenance. Low maintenance gardens will cost less over the long term.
Herbs that support the eliminatory channels, and thus indirectly the skin, include burdock, cleavers, nettles, goldenseal, yellow dock, and milk thistle, or st marys thistle.
References: Paul Bedson, The Complete Family Guide To Natural Healing (Hinkler Books, 2005)
Erica Angyal, Gorgeous Skin In 30 Days (Lothian Books, 2005
http://www.nutraingredients-usa.com/news/ng.asp?n=62044-tesco-pomegreat-pomegranate
Do you suffer from acne? Would you like to learn 6 acne nutrition tips to help you manage your acne better? Or an acne diet article that discusses the link between insulin, bread and acne? Click on the links to find out.

2006-10-18T05:29:00.000-07:00

A Victory Garden

By Carol A Hill

Tip! Understand what you want. For example a garden for a holiday house would be totally different for your normal home.
In the early nineteen forties,women shopped with ration stamps
that limited the amount of groceries they bought in order to
support the war effort. To supplement the their meager rations,
they grew vegetable gardens in spare plots of land and also in
their own back yards. Neat rows of lettuce, tomatoes, yellow wax
beans, green onions, cabbage and yellow squash were planted
everywhere. Since the ingredients for the meals depended upon
what was available in the cupboard and the garden, the home
cooks really had to stretch their imaginations.
For a late afternoon lunch, leaves of cabbage were stuffed with
ground meat, uncooked rice, stewed tomatoes and a pinch of sugar.
Stuffed Cabbage Leaves
(Serves 8)
Tip! Prepare the soil for early spring seeding. Turn over the garden soil late in the season while amending with organic matter such as leaves, compost, or well-rotted manure.
8-large cabbage leaves, washed and left whole
1-lb. ground meat
1-cup rice, uncooked
1-can stewed tomatoes, chopped
1/4-tsp sugar
1/2-cup onion, chopped
salt and pepper to taste
Directions: In a large pot boil enough water to cover the cabbage
leaves. Turn down the heat and add the cabbage leaves for three
minutes until the leaves are softened. Into a large bowl: mix the
ground meat,the uncooked rice,the onion and the sugar.Season with the salt and the pepper. After the ground meat mixture is well combined. Spoon enough of the meat mixture into the cabbage
leaves. After they are filled with the meat mixture. Roll each
filled leaf and secure it with a toothpick. Line a baking dish with the stuffed leaves and pour the stewed tomatoes over them.
Bake at 350 degrees for forty-five minutes to an hour. Serve with a bowl of lettuce and tomatoes with a sweet boiled vinegar
salad dressing.
Tip! Where animal manures are available, they are probably the best source of fertilizer and organic matter for the organic gardener. Use manure which has been aged for at least 30 days, or composted.
Boiled Vinegar Salad Dressing
1-cup white vinegar
1/2-cup sugar
1/2-cup water
salt and pepper to taste
Directions: In a saucepan: add the white vinegar, the sugar and the water on medium-high heat. Stir frequently until the vinegar
the sugar and the water are well combined. Let cool. Pour the salad dressing over the lettuce and the tomato and combine them
until the salad is well coated with the dressing.
Yellow squash is so versatile to prepare. It is good steamed with
some butter and nutmeg, baked into a favorite casserole or sliced
thin and dipped into an egg wash, then rolled into a seasoned corn meal and flour mixture and dropped into a pan of hot vegetable oil.
Tip! Water Features - are becoming more and more popular and also more affordable. Create a water feature that will suit your garden.
Fried Yellow Squash
4 or 5 yellow squash, slice thin
2-eggs,beaten
1/4-cup water
1-cup flour
3/4-cup corn meal
Salt and pepper to taste
3-cups vegetable oil
Directions: Beat the eggs with the water. Soak the slices of the yellow squash in the egg wash mixture. Soak the squash for fifteen minutes. In a bowl: mix the yellow corn meal, the flour,
and the salt and pepper. Evenly coat the slices of yellow squash
in the seasoned corn meal and flour mixture. In a deep fryer:
Gently drop the coated slices of the squash into the hot vegetable oil and fry until they are golden brown.
Tip! You will want to consider the size of your garden space, so that you can ensure proper exposure to the air and other elements as well.
Crispy yellow wax beans have never failed to please the most
finickey appetites with bacon added to them. For the carb conscious, olive oil is substituted.
Yellow Wax Beans With Bacon
2-lbs. fresh yellow wax beans, parboiled
2-slices bacon, cut into pieces
1/4-cup onion, chopped
Directions: In a skillet, cook the bacon pieces until they are
done. Remove them from the skillet and set them aside. Saute the
onion in the bacon grease, or olive oil until it is transparent.
Add the parboiled wax beans and the bacon pieces. Coat the wax
beans evenly with the bacon grease or the olive oil.
Tip! Keep your garden simple. Often simple themes work best and feel more spacious.
When the sugar ration ran low, a sugarless lemon pie was invented
for those times when a dessert was needed before the ration stamps ran out.
Lemon Victory Pie
(8-inch pie)
Graham cracker crust
16-graham crackers
2-Tlb sugar
1/4-cup of butter or margarine, melted
Directions: Combine the ingredients and press them in a eight inch pie pan. Bake in a 150 degree oven for ten minutes.
Filling:
1-1/3-cups sweetened condensed milk
1-tsp. grated lemon rind
1/2-cup lemon juice
2-egg yolks, mixed well until thickened
Directions:Combine the ingredients. Heat the oven to 350 degrees.
Meringue:
2-egg whites
pinch of salt
1/4-tsp vanilla
sugar to stiffen egg whites
Directions: Mix the egg whites in a medium bowl add the salt and
the vanilla. Set the mixer at high speed adding the sugar a little at a time. When the egg whites have formed white peaks,
spoon them on top of the pie mixture. Bake the pie for ten to
fifteen minutes. Serve cooled.
Tip! The Oriental Style - It is often the kind of garden found in houses with small backyards. It uses rocks, evergreens and water, and a wide variety of plants to create several angles with this style.
Cooking since the age of fifteen, the author has always loved
learning food history.

2006-10-17T05:07:00.000-07:00

Roasted Pumpkin Seeds are a Garden Bonus

By John Lenaghan

Your Garden. Hundreds Of Easy To Follow Ideas, Tips and Shortcuts To Create The Perfect Garden.
The reward of gardening is enjoying the fruits and vegetables of your labor. You may be overlooking a delicious and nutritious crop that right under your hoe - roast pumpkin seeds.
Pumpkins have been a popular part of vegetable gardens for centuries. The word comes from the Greek word "pompon," which means large melon. Native Americans ate roasted pumpkin and wove dried strips into mats. Today, we include pumpkins in our vegetable gardening mainly for their decorating and pie value. We often throw the seeds away.
Next time you carve a jack-'o-lantern or cook a pumpkin for pie filling, save those seeds. They make nutty-flavored snacks that are a good source of protein, fiber, iron and phosphorous.
Below is an easy, fun recipe for roasting pumpkin seeds. The whole family will enjoy making and eating this new treat from the garden. Some people like to wash the seeds before roasting. Others leave any pumpkin particles for added flavor and nutrition.
Roasted Pumpkin Seeds
2 Cups Pumpkin Seeds
1 Quart Water
2 Tablespoons salt
1 Tablespoon Melted Butter or Vegetable Oil
1. Preheat the oven to 250 degrees
2. Bring water and salt to a boil. Add the seeds and boil for 8 to 10 minutes
3. Drain the seeds in a colander and spread them on a paper towel to dry.
4. Melt the butter. Put the dry seeds and butter in a large bowl and toss until the seeds are evenly coated.
5. Spread the seeds in a single layer on a cookie sheet.
6. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes until they reach a light, golden brown color. Stir seeds every 10 minutes during cooking.
7. Cool the seeds completely before eating.
Tip! Wild Corner - I know this may be hard if you like a neat and tidy garden, but leaving a wild patch can be very entertaining and visually very pleasing. Nettles and other wildflowers attract butterflies and bees, and it's often suprising how delicate and colourful wildflowers can be when allowed to grow in their own space.
You can remove the hulls from the seeds after roasting or eat the seeds hull and all. Keep roasted seeds in airtight containers.
Gardening Tip: Set a few seeds aside before roasting. These free seeds will start next year's pumpkin patch.
John Lenaghan writes about vegetable gardening for http://www.vegetable-gardening-4u.com where he provides valuable tips and advice about seed companies, garden accessories, container gardening and other vegetable gardening topics.

2006-10-16T05:08:00.000-07:00

My House and Garden

By Micaela Ferrari

Tip! Cleaning-up the garden. Harvest warm-season crops such as tomatoes even though they are still green.
A Fondue Party is ideal for an informal evening with friends. This popular dish comes from Switzerland where villagers in the mountains had to rely on local produce, like cheese, wine and home baked bread during the long winter month. The name fondue comes from the French word "fondre", which means to melt or blend. Fondue meaning melted cheese in wine. You will need a chafing dish over a spirit stove and long fondue forks. Place the heated fondue dish on the spirit stove in the center of your table and hand out a fork to all your guests. Everyone spears a piece of bread onto the long fork, dips it into the fondue, turns it once or twice before eating it. In no time the ice will be broken and the party in full swing with everyone trying not to drop the bread form the fork. The custom is that anyone who looses a piece of bread in the dish must supply a bottle of wine. Even the experts find it hard, especially after a few glasses of Kirsch. Fondue Parties in Switzerland are a lot of fun with its warm atmosphere.
Tip! Represent the water element by using low plantings in the northeast that will allow the flow of positive solar energy. Add a fountain or reflection pool or pond in this area to reflect this beneficial energy throughout the garden.
Lots of other delicious variations exist now, e.g. Fondue Bourgignonne made with Fillet Steak accompanied with Mustard, Tatar, Bearnaise, Tomato or Curry sauce and so on.
Swiss Cheese Fondue:
Ideally a rustic wine and small glasses of Kirsch and a crispy salad are served with this. Suitable for Vegetarians.
350g ( 12oz ) Emmenthal Cheese, grated
350g ( 12oz ) Gruy�re Cheese, grated
45cl ( 3/4 pint ) dry white wine
3 tablespoons of Kirsch
3-4 flat teaspoons of corn starch
grated nutmeg to taste
1 clove of garlic
pepper to taste
Tip! Sunflowers � There's no better flower for your garden than the sunflower. Sunflowers have yellowish-orange petal with a black circle in the middle.
crusty firm bread, like French bread, cut into bite size pieces
rub the fondue pan with garlic
pour in the wine and heat very gently over the cooker
when hot add a small amount of cheese at a time, stirring continually
bring it gently to bubbling point
add the kirsch mixed with the corn starch
let it simmer for another 3 minutes, stirring continually
now place it on your fondue stand with a lit flame and serve
Tip: corn starch is a white type thickening flour and not the yellow maize variety
About the Author
Mica loves cooking and baking and has her own website where you can find a lot more mouthwatering recipes.
http://www.myhouseandgarden.com

2006-10-15T05:11:00.000-07:00

Italian Cooking Starts in the Garden!

By Sharon Sanders

Tip! The English Garden Style - This style emphasizes on the harmony between the house's architecture and the garden.
Il giardino . The garden. It's the base for good Italian meals.
Travelers back from Italy often comment on how much better the food tastes in Italy. The flavorful varieties of fruits and vegetables are a big part of the taste gap. Produce that is grown close to where it is cooked and savored just tastes better.
Perhaps we can't all live and eat in Italy but we can cook and eat closer to the Italian ideal by shopping for ingredients in local farmers' markets or supermarkets that feature regional produce. With more and more Americans desiring to eat the healthy Mediterranean way, farmers are growing Tuscan black kale, Florence fennel, radicchio, and much much more.
Tip! Keep garden beds covered with shredded leaves to minimize the risk of soil erosion and nutrient run-off.
What to do with all those wonderful vegetables in your pantry? Follow the Tuscan example. La Ribollita is a classic Tuscan dish. It means reboiled which doesn't sound appetizing in English but the taste is pure comfort. The dish started as a clever way to make a new dish of dry bread and leftover minestrone. Don't be spooked by the ingredient list; the soup comes together fast and just simmers on its own. You'll want to make the soup several days ahead so the flavors blend. The final step is baking the soup and bread in a lasagne pan to create a satisfying casserole.
La Ribollita
Serves 6 to 8
Extra-virgin olive oil
2 ounces pancetta or bacon, finely chopped (see note)
1 red onion, chopped
2 ribs celery, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
3 large cloves garlic, minced
2 dried bay leaves
1 tablespoon dried thyme leaves
1 fresh or dried hot red chile
2 cans (15 1/2 ounces each) cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
1 can (14 1/2 ounces) diced tomatoes, with juice
2 cans (14 1/2 ounces each) chicken broth
2 cups water
8 ounces Tuscan black cabbage or kale, cut in slivers
Salt and ground black pepper
1 loaf (about 12 ounces) rustic bread, cut in 1/2-inch thick slices, dried for 24 hours or toasted
1 cup (4 ounces) grated Parmesan cheese
Tip! Cleaning your tools. Clean the soil from all your gardening tools, oil any wooden handles and moving parts, sharpen any blades, and then store them in a dry place for the winter.
Cook 2 tablespoons oil and pancetta or bacon in a large pot over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes or until pancetta is crisp. Add the onion, celery, carrot, garlic, bay leaves, thyme and chile. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, over medium heat for 10 minutes. Add the beans and stir to combine with the vegetables. Add the tomatoes with juice, broth, and water. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low. Cover partially and simmer for 45 minutes or until the carrots are softened.
Add the Tuscan black cabbage or kale. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover partially and simmer for 15 minutes. Cool completely then refrigerate for up to 3 days.
To serve: Reheat the soup over medium heat. Remove and discard the bay leaves and chile.
Preheat the oven to 350� F. Coat a 5-quart lasagne baking dish with no-stick spray. Ladle half of the soup into the dish. Cover with a layer of bread slices. Ladle on the remaining soup. With a knife or fork, cut through the bread slices so soup can soak into them.
Tip! Containers - Collect large pots and grow plants you can move around the garden, every day if you like! Grow herbs and flowers and position sweet smelling plants on the patio or round your seating area. Strawberries grow very well in containers as do other useful plants.
Bake for 30 minutes or until the mixture is bubbling and bread starts to rise souffle-like. Sprinkle on the Parmesan. Broil, 6 inches from the heat source, for about 5 minutes or until top is sizzling. Remove and allow to sit for 10 few minutes before spooning into pasta plates.
Serve with a mixed greens salad, followed by a winter fruit salad of diced apples, pears, kiwi, and oranges tossed with some lemon juice and sugar.
Note: Pancetta is a cured and seasoned pork belly similar to bacon but not smoked.It is sold in supermarkets and Italian specialty stores.
Tip! It's smart gardening to learn what the advantages and disadvantages would be if you were to choose certain roses over others.
Sharon Sanders, author and media personality, is the author of Cooking Up an Italian Life: Simple Pleasures of Italy in Recipes and Stories. She contributes to Cooking Light and other national publications and also lectures on the Italian lifestyle and teaches Italian cooking. She is a Certified Culinary Professional and publishes a free electronic newsletter from her Web site http://www.simpleitaly.com.

2006-10-13T05:10:00.000-07:00

New Jersey Real Estate - The Garden State

By Raynor James

Your Garden. Hundreds Of Easy To Follow Ideas, Tips and Shortcuts To Create The Perfect Garden.
New Jersey is often miscast as a less than nice place to live, when the truth is the garden state motto is accurate. New Jersey real estate prices reflect Atlantic Ocean influences.
New Jersey
With the crooning of Bruce Springsteen, New Jersey has been depicted as a non-descript home of industry. Take a ride on the turnpike in the north and you'll agree. Simply put, parts of the state are unattractive, but much of the rest is very nice. New Jersey is that odd location where you want to avoid the bigger cities and live in the smaller towns. They represent gems on the eastern seaboard with low prices relative to the region. Move to New Jersey and you'll be close to areas such as the gambling at Atlantic City, beaches on the Atlantic and large cities such as New York City.
Tip! Have a big picture of your garden. What do you want your garden to look like and what sort of theme?
Princeton
Home to the famous and respected Princeton University, the town of Princeton is simply beautiful. You'll find older historic homes, castle-like buildings and green, overgrown landscaping. While this is definitely a college town, the atmosphere fall more towards the study of intellectual discourse than toga parties. Home to such notable individuals as Albert Einstein, Princeton is a surprisingly quiet and a good place to raise a family.
Atlantic City
If gambling is your game, Atlantic City is the spot on the East Coast. Sitting on the coast, this is the home of over the top casinos with a heavy influence of Trump. To be honest, Atlantic City is a take it or leave it place. The city has gone through major economic swings and is heavily influenced by the seasons. The winters can be depressing, but spring and summer can be a hoot with a mass of tourist livening up the area. Atlantic City is often described as a poor man's Las Vegas, but it is more akin to the Reno area without the skiing and mountains.
Tip! Rock Gardens - Rock gardens can take on different themes and colour schemes throughout the year with a little careful planning. There is again some heavy physical work involved when you're putting together your rock garden but well worth it in the end.
New Jersey Real Estate
New Jersey real estate prices are all over the map. Prices range from the mid $250,000s to as high as the $900,000s for homes. You'll need to research the prices in your area of interest.
On a positive note, appreciation rates are strong in New Jersey. On average, real estate appreciated at a rate of over 16 percent in 2005.
Raynor James is with the FSBO site - FSBOAmerica.org - homes for sale by owner. Visit our home buying page to view and buy New Jersey real estate.

2006-10-12T05:08:00.000-07:00

Computer Geeks and Garden Gnomes

By Andy Staveley

Tip! The Formal Style uses lots of straight lines and perfect geometrical shapes. Orderly arrangement of plants instead of random positioning is employed, and close arrangement and pruning is used on many landscaped gardens with this style.
First and foremost before I begin my ranting it is worth mentioning that there are many very helpful and considerate people out there in the cyber wilderness who devote much of their time to providing open source and free scripts of all variations from PHP, CGI and Java to name but a few. They provide dedicated support, do not insist on payment, and spend much of their free time helping you avoid having to part with your hard earned cash to get free programs and scripts up and running on your websites.
Now, that having been said I have just spent an enlightening couple of days installing several PHP and CGI scripts, mainly because whilst I have some experience of installations, the only true way to become fast and efficient with all this geeky stuff is to install, de install and test a variety of applications and programs yourself.
After two days and over a hundred scripts I am left drained. Half of the scripts I just dumped immediately due to poor or non-existent documentation and bad layout of files. It amazes me that some quite intricate scripts are left high and dry without any installation documents at all. In other words, the author spent days programming and putting together complicated scripts, to fail miserably on poor or non existent documentation. Aside from this, some sites you visit in order to download this material insist on blitzing you with numerous pop ups - the end result of which is neither good for the person visiting the website or the website owner. Both part very quickly. Perhaps I am intolerant but any sign of boxes leaping up in the air and blind adverts and I am gone. I know I am not alone.
Tip! Organic Gardening - Since organic fertilizer and soil conditioning materials are slow working in general, they should be mixed into the soil at least three weeks ahead of planting and the soil thoroughly prepared for the seed or transplants.
Add to this the frustration of taking the time to read through endless documents and CGI scripts on websites only to find that when you click on a link for more information or a download you find it is dead, the site under maintenance or what was advertised as free is not actually free. Either that or you go to the extreme of getting a script working only to find the writers advertisement popping up all over the place to the extent it warrants dumping the script. Yes I know you can remove it for a fee but why didn't you tell me that before I installed it?
Even quite clear documentation often omits what is to the writer an obvious requirement but not something that he or she chooses to share with their hapless user - classic example might be forgetting to mention that an SQL database is needed. Hardly a minor omission.
At the height of one frustrating and particularly badly written install attempt I imagined myself as John Cleese with a garden gnome under my arm hunting for the writer. Anonymity on the internet does has its advantages in this case.
Tip! Containers - Collect large pots and grow plants you can move around the garden, every day if you like! Grow herbs and flowers and position sweet smelling plants on the patio or round your seating area. Strawberries grow very well in containers as do other useful plants.
Now, I know you will be cynical and say that most of this is down to the fact that many script writers are hoping you will pay them to install their scripts for you, indeed many do offer installation services. This really is a bad way of advertising your services. There are plenty of people who will have trouble with the easiest installs and if you wrote clear and concise documentation which any user can see is genuinely comprehensive, you are more likely to secure customers as a result of failed installs.
During this laborious exercise we went through scripts of all kinds some of which include; online photo albums, content management systems, member login and authentication scripts, virtual postcards, email programs, hosting scripts, live helper, communication, e commerce, shopping carts, quiz and chat programs to name but a few. We also purchased 3 scripts. Only one of those free scripts was simple to install and marginally better than the free versions available. Paying money does not necessarily mean better service. In fact one photo album provider charging around $30 dollars per script provided bad install information and less than helpful advice, immediately deleting anything that mentioned install problems from his forum.
Tip! When choosing plants for your garden, remember crops that are suited to your soil and climate will be more resistant to problems. If you experiment with exotics, be prepared to give them more care.
It has been an experience. If none of this has meant anything to you and you have no idea about scripting or installing scripts then consider yourself fortunate and leave it to the geeks if you are able.
For those of you that regularly dive into scripting for your websites - here is a useful tip that saved us no end of time and frustration. The minute you come up against bad scripting, bad documentation or difficult to install scripts - trash them, ditch them and move on. There are plenty of others. Leave the tricky badly written stuff to the real hardcore freaks.
Tip! Cleaning-up the garden. Harvest warm-season crops such as tomatoes even though they are still green.
Birmingham UK Com. For some free E Books visit:
http://www.birminghamuk.com/shop/upload/.

2006-10-11T05:08:00.000-07:00

Weeding The VoIP Garden

By Scott Sowle

Tip! Cleaning-up the garden. Harvest warm-season crops such as tomatoes even though they are still green.
Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) is fast becoming the way for the world to communicate and the VoIP market jungle is full of weeds wanting to become trees.
VoIP has been around for the public market since 2002 and you can only find about a handful of stand alone VoIP service providers. Vonage who is the king of marketing still clings to its �Woo Hoo� song and their ever rising marketing costs and lower profits. Packet8, the old pioneer of Internet phone service, is chugging away while building up consumer confidence and new innovative VoIP products. We see Lingo, who likes to push their International calling plans, struggling to regain ground on the rest of field, and the new kid in the garden, SunRocket, who brings their trusty Bottom-Line pricing along for the new growth of VoIP. These and a few other companies are around for the long haul.
It is important in these early growth stages to weed out those who are trying to choke out the main growth. These are VoIP providers who are only in for the early money grabbing glory days and will die off when the heat starts to beat down on them.
Tip! Rock Gardens - Rock gardens can take on different themes and colour schemes throughout the year with a little careful planning. There is again some heavy physical work involved when you're putting together your rock garden but well worth it in the end.
If you are looking for a new VoIP service provider you need to take a few hours and weed out the jungle. You can check out the online VoIP news reports for their achievements and future plans, find and study the VoIP forums. Internet phone providers who have little or no news at all are mainly the ones that will die out. You'll find that the strong growing VoIP companies are bringing new and improve products and services to the field everyday. Researching like this can be tough going and very time consuming.
Another option is to locate an independent VoIP, broadband or telecommunication consultant who is consistently researching and learning about the new VoIP services and products offered. These consultants are not being paid by just one provider or company to sell only their products. They are able to give you unbiased advice concerning the services you are considering. They can tell you the pros and cons of each individual provider even for those who they don't represent.
Tip! Organic Gardening - Since organic fertilizer and soil conditioning materials are slow working in general, they should be mixed into the soil at least three weeks ahead of planting and the soil thoroughly prepared for the seed or transplants.
Using an independent telecom consultant will ease the pain and time in finding that right VoIP or broadband phone provider especially in this weed choked Internet phone garden. An independent consultant will be able to inform you of what all of the top VoIP providers are doing with new services, products and future plans for the leading VoIP solutions. The great thing is you get all of your information in a few minutes and its free (Do Not Pay For Consulting).
Tip! Keep your garden simple. Often simple themes work best and feel more spacious.
For more information on VoIP services, products and news contact: http://www.altabroadband.bravehost.com

2006-10-05T05:14:00.000-07:00

Nurture Musical Talent as You Would Care for a New Garden

By Cynthia VanLandingham

Tip! Keep your garden simple. Often simple themes work best and feel more spacious.
The modern world of high speed internet, microwave ovens, fast cars, and Television creates expectations of instant results that are neither realistic nor sustainable when it comes to learning a difficult instrument such as the piano. Children and sometimes parents expect overnight results. This perception of learning is based on what C. Wright Mills calls a Sociological Imagination, or what I call a shared illusion about reality, learned mainly from TV and the movies.
Here's an example. Ever watch the show �Friends.� This show glorifies people in their 30s who still act like adolescents. Wait a minute, that's not really fair - my apologies. I know plenty of adolescents who are more responsible than the cast of characters in Friends. Sure. It's a cute show but think about its content? What message does it send to young people? Certainly not the message that hard work and sacrifice pays off.
Learning to play the piano is more like the sustained effort of planning and growing your own garden, and then sharing your harvest with your family and friends. We have some blueberry plants growing in our back yard. They were very small when we first planted them, producing only a few berries. Now 15 years later, we harvest a freezer full of blueberries every summer! Many times we could have dug them up and planted some more attractive shrubs, but we always believed that one day they would grow into big blueberry �trees� and give us lots of yummy fruit. And now after years of care, they do.
Tip! Rock Gardens - Rock gardens can take on different themes and colour schemes throughout the year with a little careful planning. There is again some heavy physical work involved when you're putting together your rock garden but well worth it in the end.
Nurturing your child's or your own musical talent is a lot like growing a garden. It takes time and patience. As well as attention to the simple things, like coming to lessons each week, attending recitals, developing a practice routine, staying focused on your goals, and believing that one day your dream will come true.
Home And Garden - Country And Rural Life. Gardening and Birds, Raising Chickens and Goats, Baking Bread. more coming soon.
For great home piano activities parents can use to help children ages 5 to 11 develop their musical talent, visit Piano Adventure Bears Music Education Resources You'll find a treasure box filled with piano resources to create an exciting musical adventure for your child - right in your own home! Visit their website and subscribe to their f'ree internet newsletter so you can download f'ree piano sheet music and mp3s of original piano compositions.
These exciting stories, games, piano lessons, and inspirational gifts feature the Piano Adventure Bears, Mrs. Treble Beary and her new piano student, Albeart Littlebud. Young students follow along with Albeart to learn what piano lessons are all about in a fun way that kids readily understand appreciate. Click here to visit PianoAdventureBears.com For a wealth of information about piano lessons, visit tallypiano.com

2006-10-04T05:12:00.000-07:00

11 Alternative Garden Games

By Tom Schneider

Tip! It's smart gardening to learn what the advantages and disadvantages would be if you were to choose certain roses over others.
Tired of the same ol', same ol' when it come to entertaining your garden party guests? Weary of boring badminton and jarts? Croquet not your style? Then you're in the right spot! Here are games sure to make your next party the hit of the gardening social season!
Icebreakers

Game #1: The Gnat Slap

Equipment required: A garden of any size.

As your guests arrive, invite them for the obligatory 'stroll through the garden'. Tell them they are welcome to slap the gnats but only those gnats annoying another guest; never are they permitted to slap gnats hovering around their own eyes, nose, ears or mouth. The winner is the last guest standing. A great icebreaker!

Game #2: The 3-Legged Butterfly Chase

Equipment required: Rope or wire to bind legs.

This is lots of fun. Tightly bind two guests' legs together to make a three-legged contestant. Then tell them you'll unbind them only after they've captured a butterfly.
Tip: For a longer lasting game, declare the quarry to be a hummingbird.

Game #3: Competitive Weed Pulling

Equipment required: Weeds of any kind.

This is a great game to reward the hard working guest. Entrants don't eat until the entire garden is cleaned of weeds. Winner: The person with the most weeds eats first and most, and so on down the line. This game teaches the rewards of the Puritan work ethic.

Game #4: The Wasp Dodge

Equipment required: More wire for binding, an in-ground wasp nest or two (Yellow Jackets are the best!), a small amount of kerosene.

With hands tightly wired behind their backs, have your players stand in a circle around a wasp nest entrance. Irritate the wasps by sprinkling a little kerosene over the hole and oh, boy! Stand back! Entrants are judged on style, grace, self-defensive acrobatic movements and number of stings.

Tip! Build up the southwest area of your garden to produce the stabilizing force of the earth element. You can do this with a rock garden, tall trees and even a stone statue.

Games to Play While the Frozen Turkey Cooks on the Charcoal Grill

Game #5: Watch the Lawn Go Dormant

Equipment required: A dry turf.

This is for those guests that had a poor showing in the other games. The winner is the person still awake when the lawn is actually declared dormant.

Game #6: Bobbing for Aquatic Insects

Equipment required: A stagnant water source such as a neglected pool, pond or bucket. Kids love this one!

The winner is whoever come up with the largest water strider. Incentive for the competitively spirited: Anyone bobbing to the bottom retrieving the hapless mouse that slipped in about a month ago qualifies for the National Bobb-Off!

Game #7: Slug Races
Equipment required: A slug for each guest.

We suggest two events: The 4" sprint and the 2-foot marathon. Guests may mark their slugs in any way they wish.
Tip 1: Use an air-horn to signify the start of the races. Slugs are hard of hearing.

Tip 2: Entrants in the "Watch the Lawn Go Dormant" game can play this game simultaneously.

Game #8: Hornet's Nest Pinata

Equipment required: 1 large hornet's nest, a stick long enough to reach the nest, a blindfold.

This game really livens things up after the slower pace of the slug races and helps work off dinner.

Game #9: Blindfolded Lawn Mowing

Equipment required: A power mower and the blindfold from the Hornet's Nest Pinata game if it isn't too bloody.

Everyone loves this sport! One by one guests are blindfolded and told to mow the grass. The winner is the contestant who runs over the fewest trees, shrubs, flowers, pets and other guests. Lotsa laughs!
Time Saving tip: Dial 911 before the game begins.

Games for After Dark

Tip! Wild Corner - I know this may be hard if you like a neat and tidy garden, but leaving a wild patch can be very entertaining and visually very pleasing. Nettles and other wildflowers attract butterflies and bees, and it's often suprising how delicate and colourful wildflowers can be when allowed to grow in their own space.

Game #10: Firefly Shooting
Equipment required: A BB gun for everyone.

After a fun day of activities and food, gather everyone in the center of the garden in a large circle to try their hand at nailing a few fireflies. The winner, and don't expect one, is anyone who actually knocks a lightening bug out of the sky. Time Saving tip: Dial 911 before the game begins.

Game #11: Feed the Mosquitos

Equipment required: Go figure.

Play this last game while lingering over "good-byes" in the garden.
Your Garden. Hundreds Of Easy To Follow Ideas, Tips and Shortcuts To Create The Perfect Garden.
When Tom Schneider isn't trying to find new guests to invite to his garden parties, he and his wife Deb are busy with their on-line machine embroidery design business, WindstarEmbroidery.com

2006-10-03T05:10:00.000-07:00

Granny's Almost Garden

By Marge Holley

Tip! Wild Corner - I know this may be hard if you like a neat and tidy garden, but leaving a wild patch can be very entertaining and visually very pleasing. Nettles and other wildflowers attract butterflies and bees, and it's often suprising how delicate and colourful wildflowers can be when allowed to grow in their own space.
I almost had a garden this year. Then the earwigs took over my lettuce. The grasshoppers confiscated all my zucchini and various other flying insects shared the sunflowers. The gophers leveled one row in an afternoon. They enjoyed a healthy salad. I did get one meal of peas and one helping of green beans. The produce that I ate cost me about six dollars a pound but the relaxation of working in my garden with grasshoppers slamming into my head is priceless.
The grandchild got a puppy last week. A cute, little untrained puppy. Now I have to be careful where I step walking through the house. It was bad enough when I had to get a pooper scooper for my lawn. But for the living room? Training Fido has become a family project. Cleaning up Fido's accidents seems to be my field of expertise. Conveniently no one notices or seems to be around at these critical times. Last year I inherited the job of cleaning the parakeet cage. Next I fed the bird and changed his water. He won't even sit on my finger. Ungrateful bird! I suspect Fido is leaning toward this sort of behavior. He barks at me every time I come home but if I'm in the kitchen cooking, his attitude is completely different. What's wrong with goldfish? They make such nice pets. They stay put; swim around in circles and have short life spans. By the time the newness wears off, they die.
Tip! Cut down on Big Toys - Children's outdoor toys, such as swings, slides etc; can take up loads of room in the garden, and they're not always very attractive. Look for something a little less permanent.
Personally I've always wanted a miniature horse. They will mow and fertilize the yard and are a nice size. They don't need a big barn and they are cute. If you change your mind, they have resale value. (signed practical Granny)
Granny Marge has just published her second humor book, Granny's Journal. She is a library director in a small town in the Northwest and turned 62 this year. She forgets a lot so if she repeats herself, please forgive her.

Garden Secrets Articles

2006-10-02T15:16:00.000-07:00
Welcome to the GardenSecrets Articles Blog that will help you to have more joy with your garden and find interesting facts that make garden work more easy and more rewarding.

We will add every day selected garden articles here. While you wait you can visit my personal favorite garden resource page.

Much success and have fun in nature!