HelpHive Home Advice Center

Best roofing materials for Northwest homes

Mike Hedgecock — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 17:15:16 +0000

Is it time for a new roof for your family’s home? It could be a question you already know, but just don’t know or understand what will last for the security of your homes roof. The roofing industry has many products, but unfortunately there are many products that don’t just cut it in the Northwest weather.

Two products you should take into consideration when hiring a company to do your new roof is Certain Teed and Owens Corning.

Certain Teed’s Shake

Certain Teed makes great products for all your homes needs. The roofing has been a great product for over 100 years. There are many products they carry for roofing, but I want to let you know about the most affordable and reliable products they carry.

Presidential Shake Tl is a fabulous product, and very popular in many neighborhoods. It has the look of shake and bold colors to match your home. The material itself is three layers thick and gives a coverage of three pieces of material. It was designed to roof so there are no rain slots seen visibly on your roof. The Presidential TL has a wind-resistance of 110 mph. Its a lifetime product that looks great and last. Its a little more in the price, but you are assured not to have to replace your roof on you home. It also comes in a cheaper Presidential shake, which is the same look, but not as thick. The difference is 2 layers thick besides three.

Landmark TL is a dimensional roofing product and also three layers thick. The look is the typical look on most 30 year roofing products, but the difference is the thickness and bold look. The price is much more affordable, and also more affordable in the installation for most roofing companies. Landmark TL also carries a 110 mph wind-resistance warranty. It has an algae resistance built into the material to keep your roof from building awful eye sore alage and mold. It is highly recommended if you can’t afford the Presidential look, still giving your home a unique bold finish.

Owens Corning’s Shingle

Owens Corning makes a great 30 year product with an algae resistant built into the shingle. It is a very cost affective product that has great colors that do not fade as fast as some roofing products. Owens Corning designed a sure nail nailing strip for the contractor roofing you new roof to follow for a quality nailing installation. It is a 30 year limited warranty with 110 mph wind-resistance.

Owens Corning’s Surfaced Rolled Roofing

For homes or building with a low sloped roof, Owens corning carries a great torch down product. It is built with a strong fiberglass mat, which makes it a tough product that lasts. The colors are minimum, but has the basic colors to choose from to match your homes needs. White is a popular color for many new roofs. The white reflects the UV rays of the sun, which allows the material to last a little longer. The down fall is there is no algae resistant built into the product, but a yearly cleaning will make it last its lifetime. There are many different torch down installations. Doing a 2-ply system is very popular. This is where you lay a smooth torch down under the granulated torch down to give it a longer lifetime. Ask your roofing company for more information on the 2 ply system for details.

Certain Teed’s Mountain Ridge for Ridge Cap

Ridge Cap to finish your roof is very key to your homes final look. Mountain Ridge is by far the most beautiful way to finish the roofs look. The high profile look makes the home stand out with a bold strong look, with colors that match the roofing you choose. Its a strong ridge cap with algae resistant built in as well. Its a bit more then standard ridge, but the ending results are amazing. Certain Teed came out with so many colors for mountain ridge you can match it up with other roofing products colors, letting you finish your home with a great ridge cap.

Certain Teed product links: Presidential Shake TL, Presidential Shake, Landmark TL, Mountain Ridge

Owens Corning product links: Duration Shingles, Nailing strip, Rolled Roofing

New Life For Your Home on a Budget: Creative Painting!

Jim Mathwig — Tue, 20 Apr 2010 15:52:14 +0000

You might be placing your large scale remodeling ideas on hold in view of the economy. At the same time remodeling bargains can be had. Still a right now option that maximizes your dollar can be painting. Paint provides a clean fresh surface and wall protection but beyond that it is art. Some designs seemlessly blend tones of walls, paintings, furniture, blanket throws and pillows, and lampshades. Others tie in bold colors with a few accent pieces. Let’s get started with unlocking your design possibilities!

Notice colors that you like and combinations of colors that appeal to you. Collect pages from magazines. If a friend has something you like ask for the colors and pickup the paint cards. Collect palettes you like in general and those that might be specific to the room(s) you want to paint.

Notice color trends as you watch TV. Look at the walls in the scenes. You will find examples of rich bold colors in surprising places. If you like some color combos in a business, such as a nice destination coffeehouse, don’t be afraid to imagine them in your home.

Combine your own research with the advice of your artistic friends. You might know several people with a designers knack. There advice can be very helpful. Sometimes though, they can give you a bum steer. Most designers and artists, by nature, are comfortable taking chances–stretching the envelope. They may capture for you exactly what you want, or give you a shocking array of colors that aren’t you.

Notice the colors in the color. All colors are tipped in a direction. An attempt to find a “simple beige” will reveal beiges that lean toward pink, toward yellow, toward gray–it almost defies logic. Putting other color sample cards next to a color will reveal components of a color you hadn’t noticed before. A given color can be found in warm hues or cool tones.

Don’t be afraid to buy samples to try out. Some stores will sell low cost 1 oz. packets. Others have quarts as their smallest product size, which cost as much as half the price of a gallon. If you continue with a color you don’t end up liking you will be disappointed. Still I try to get it right and buy the gallon (to save!). Sometimes I alter the paint before applying a second coat.

Medium to dark shades will require two quality coats. Some colors, such as a vivid red, can benefit from special primer for dark colors, followed by two coats of the color.

Sheen. Flat covers imperfections best, and its lack of sheen is loved by designers, but is never truly washable. Avoid in places hands will touch it. On the other end of the spectrum is gloss, which I have never used, with most people using semi-gloss for a high shine washable surface. Between flat and semi-gloss are usually satin and eggshell, but companies vary as to which is closest to flat and which to semi-gloss, so don’t assume. If we think instead of 1 to 5 with flat being 1, I tend to use 2 for common areas and bedrooms, and 3 for kitchens and baths. Traditionally kitchens and baths are done in semi-gloss (4) as are all trim (I follow tradition here). Apartments are painted with more emphasis on durability and washability: 3 or even 4 for general areas and always 4 in kitchens and baths.

Do it yourself or hire a highly recommended professional painter? Im a consumer too and as such am all for saving money. When I come in to do a professional paint job over a homeowner previous work, rarely do a find a really good job. There are “holidays,” meaning areas where the under color are visible, thin areas and roller marks (lack of saturation), paint where it shouldn’t be (electrical receptacles, baseboards, casings, walls of other colors), and signs of proper wall prep before painting. True enough these same homeowners seem quite happy with their work-so who am I to say. But if you want a full quality professional paint job it is going to take lots of meticulous effort, and you will make an investment, whether you do it yourself or hire it done.

Building a Concrete Foundation for your Addition: Part Two

Jim Mathwig — Tue, 20 Apr 2010 14:39:52 +0000

Welcome back! If you missed part one we covered how to size and form a foundation along with starting basics. Let’s keep moving!

Rebar reinforcement. Standard is two 1/2″ rebar laid horizontally in the footing and one every 18″ in the stem wall. Rebar ends are joined by overlapping 40 times the width of the rebar, or 20″ for 1/2″. These are tied together at two or three points with tie wire. Local codes and specific structural conditions may require a different program, such as adding vertical pieces with an “L” bottom in the footing placed every two feet. Rebar can be bent for corners by doing it over your knee (not always fun), using the ball hitch on the back of your truck or SUV, or ideally with a cutter/bender. You will usually want to lay the footing rebar in the trench before form ties cut off access, meaning before the opposing form is set.
Bracing and squaring. To check square you can use the aforementioned 3:4:5 method, but also want to compare the diagonals of any square section. If your addition is 20′ out and 16′wide, you would place a mark back 16′ on each side. Then compare the diagonal measurement of the created square. Ideally they are within an 1/8 or 1/4″. If it is too late to make an adjustment a larger descrepancy could be tolerated. If you are using form ties to hold the stem wall forming together, you only need to run a stake to the form top on each side to stabalize your formwork. Without ties lower sections of the forming must also be supported by stakes.
Pour day. We carefully measure and calculate the amount of concrete to order. Usually you will order a 5 sack mix with 3/4″ aggragate or what is equaivalent for your area. The dispatcher will ask you what slump you want, but you will confess what you don’t know and they will be happy to help you select. You need a plan for how you are getting the concrete to the forms. Can the truck drive right up? Will you carry it in wheelbarrows? Are you forced to bring it in 5 gallon buckets? You will want extra hands to help get your concrete placed quickly. Usually you will make one pass filling the footing and up into the stem wall to “seal it off.” A second pass will top off the forms. Sometimes you will add a little water to the mix (the driver will have water on the truck to mix in) for the walls after using a stiffer mix in the footing. To assure that the concrete mix is settling, you will work a stick up and down or rent an electric vibrator. You will want to tap the outside of the forms with a hammer to smooth out the concrete there. Don’t forget to put in your anchor bolts, closer together than code, for a good job.
After pour. When the concrete is in place and you are congratulating yourself, go around and look for any place concrete has fallen against forms and remove it. It is amazing how little amounts of concrete once hardened can make form removal difficult. If your pour was early enough, you might be able to remove form stakes after a couple hours, saving a harder job later. This depends on all the factors, such as air temperature and amount of moisture in concrete, that determine how much your concrete has set up. In any case this is just removing the vertical form stakes which now penetrate the footing, while leaving the forms in place.
Stripping forms. The next day, remove all form stakes and bracing and all wall tie wedges first. Remove top cleats and any attachment of form to forms. Use a tool to “cut an edge” where form top meets concrete to make sure removal of forms doesn’t take some of your soft concrete with it. You will continue to gently break the suction grip the concrete has on the forms. You want to be very careful in any prying not to mar the soft concrete where you are leveraging. As the formwork is removed, you will want to clean it up before stacking.
Finishing. Look for places where concrete has built up too high such as around anchor bolts and remove with a concrete chisel. If there are any voids in the stemwall, where concrete didn’t fill in, fill these with redimix concrete if large (which would mean you didn’t tamp or vibrate well), or mortar mix if small. Clean everyything from inside the new structure. Backfill against stem walls and grade entire inside surface to a racked smooth level. You will also backfill against the outside forms and may want to do some grading for drainage now. If you are beginning construction immediately be careful, such as when tightening anchor bolt nuts and certainly when straightening an anchor bolt. Your concrete will be relatively soft for days.

If all of this overwhelms you, you may want to hire a recommended remodeling contractor or recommended professional concrete specialist for all or part of this vital process. Wasn’t this fun?

Building a Concrete Foundation for your Addition: Part One

Jim Mathwig — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 13:30:13 +0000

You may have the perfect spot for a simple house addition and want to do it yourself, but wonder, “How do I build a solid foundation?” Proper plans include checking for any point loads requiring a larger foundation section as well as any hold downs required for shear strength. There is a reason that proper permitting makes sure these are done! Here we are discussing, across two articles, a basic foundation–here’s what is involved!:

Non basics: A point load is when weight from above is concentrated in one location such as a post supporting one end of a beam supporting floor joists. A widening of the footing may be required in this section. Holdowns will require specialized bolts to be embedded in the pour. An electrician may need to bury a ground wire or a plumber may need a hole blocked out in the pour for the passing of a pipe through the foundation.
Sizing: If you are forming for a poured in place concrete foundation, the stem wall is usually 6″ wide for a single story and 8″ for a two story. A single story footing is a minimum 7″ deep (high) and 12″ wide (better builders use a 15″ min.), while two story footings are a min 8″ deep and 18″ wide. National code specifies generically a minimum depth of 12″ for footing bottom for one story and 18″ for two story houses. The 12″ depth is almost always too shallow though. The top 6″ of soil can easily get loose in a dry summer leaving your foundation almost on the surface. All foundations must be below the winter freeze depth. If your soil never freezes hard, the 12″ meets this requirement. Even if your soil only freezes every couple of years you want to go down at least 15.” I understand places in Minnesota have five foot depth requirements! Conversely Alaska builders building on permafrost must insulate the ground from the buildings heat so that the soil doesn’t thaw!
Digging: If you use a backhoe or power anything, understand that any disturbed soil must be removed so that your foundation always rests on undisturbed soil (There are exceptions where soil is professionally recompacted with a power tamper). Call the “before you dig” number to make sure power lines are not in danger as well as plotting any sewer or water lines. You will custom craft with a shovel for clean precise trenches or you may be going all manual anyhow. Slopes are dealt with by making a section level and then stepping down any needed amount to a new level to maintain footing depth. Trench width is not only what is required for footing, but wide enough to accomodate stem wall plus forming and stakes on both sides.
Batter boards: This horizontal board set on stakes and braced, holds a nail to which a stringline is attached. If setting a line for a wall coming out from the house, you can run another line parallel to the side of the house and then set accordingly. Conversely you can check for square using some math. You remember the Pythagorean therom don’t you! An easy adaptation is when one side (the form line) is 3 and another side (the house perpendicular to form line) is 4, then the diagonal (hypoteneus for math people) is 5. Applying that in ratio might be 15′, 20′ and 25′. The line parallel to house is set simply by measuring off house. You may set lines initially and discover you need to make an adjustment to make things square. When done mark form nails and nails for stake line (see below) to distinguish.
Forming: A common technique is to use 2 x’s to form the stem wall. These may be some of your floor joists. This allows for Simpson (or?) stem wall ties to be used to lock together your stem wall forming and also allows for easy adjustment of top height. You will also use some cleats , perhaps of plywood, to hold the form tops together. Some use plywood panels with 2 x 4 supports either flat or framed like a stud wall for forming. These can be built to suit, or an average size used and an additional board of dimensional lumber added at bottom as needed. The resulting slightly wider footing there should be underground. To set forms or boards you will first drive some stakes. Set a string line for the stakes, not the foundation line. Put your level on the stake as you line it up before driving it. If rocks throw if off too much, redrive it. While forms are set to top height, boards are set bottom first, maintaining minimum footing depth. You may want to rip the bottom board to a calculated width to make your top height come out where you want it. You can also rip the top board, or select a lumber width that is closest. Stem wall form top height is calculated by what is needed inside and out. Outside, code requires a minimum of 6″ from siding to soil, which will be higher after you grade for drainage. You are better off with more. Inside you need to maintain a minimum distance of 18″ from the bottom of floor joist to soil. You will want to attach forming to stakes and to other forming with duplex nails or screws to make removal easier.

As you can see this is a technical process, easier for some than for others, you may want the services of a quality recommended professional carpenter/contractor or a highly-rated concrete specialist. In part two of this article you will find information on rebar reinforcement, bracing and squaring, pouring, stripping, and final finishing.

Universal Plant Health Care

Mary Kay Swanson — Tue, 06 Apr 2010 15:15:43 +0000

You get regular check ups and take your pets to the vet – and if you are a homeowner there is one more living thing you are responsible for that needs regular check ups as well and that is your yard and garden. Having a healthy, easily managed, pest free and environmentally friendly garden starts with having a health care plan for you garden.

The concept of Plant Health Care (PHC) stems from the environmentally sensitive approach to pest control in the garden called Integrated Pest Management (IPM). IPM practices are more holistic than the name implies and include all aspects of the garden’s health, not just how to kill the bugs the most environmentally friendly way. PHC is the first step to successful IPM techniques being utilized in your own garden. Plant health care is a change in both attitude and technique in garden maintenance and has been being utilized by professional landscape companies that practice organic only gardening techniques for years. (And as my company is one of them, I can speak from 15 years experience that these techniques do work.)

Turns out bugs are not your worst enemy in the garden. Many folks see things going wrong with a plant in the garden and think bugs first, however most of the time this is not the case. For example, at the Plant Diagnostic Laboratory at WSU in Puyallup half the plants submitted for diagnosis were not affected by insect pests or disease organisms but rather were sick due to cultural and environmental factors such as drought stress, winter damage and over watering.

Plant Health Care (PHC) “sees proper culture as the foundation of healthy landscapes and emphasizes working with nature rather than fighting it with a ‘Learn Your Ecosystem’ approach.”

Identify plants. The first step in implementing a PHC system for your yard is to identify and list all of the plants in your yard. Once you know what plants are in your yard and garden you will then be able to research them for their cultural needs, most common pest problems and common environmental problems. While researching you may discover that you have some of the key plants that are the most problem prone and require the most attention. If this task sounds too daunting then contact a quality local landscape company and ask for a consultation for plant identification.
Key problems. Once you know what kind of plants you have you can then identify key problems both biotic (insects, fungi, slugs, deer etc.) and abiotic (non-living factors such as weather, irrigation, soil fertility). Key problems are the first things to look for as they are the most likely to be impacting a plants health. ( for example; rhododendrons usually suffer from either root weevils or poor drainage. )
Study landscapes ecosystem. Become aware of climatic factors such as minimum temperatures, prevailing winds, seasonal patterns of precipitation and the amount of sun received in different areas of the garden. Knowing the wet spots, hot spots, dry spots etc. will enable you to match the right plants to the different habitats in your yard. Also understand what kind of soils you have in different areas and how they drain – there may be clay in one sunny area and sand in another where it is shady and these very different cultures may be only a back yard apart from each other. This can make a huge difference in what plants will thrive in these very different locations.
Monitor. A large part of PHC is to monitor your garden on a regular basis (or hire a professional landscape service that understand PHC to do maintenance for you.) Monitoring at least every two weeks during the growing season of Spring - Summer and at least once a month during the Fall - Winter is essential. When out in the garden check for signs of plant distress (wilting leaves, yellowing leaves, die back) and be on the look out for developing pest problems (aphids, chew holes on leaves). Concentrate your monitoring on the key plants that get the key problems to start and you will develop your eye for problems over time as you observe for many seasons.

Once you know what you have and know what is going on with your ecosystems you will have the knowledge to optimize your plants health.

This begins with smart planting in the first place. If you have found you have a lot of problem plants then the best thing to do in the long run may be to replace them with plants properly suited to the conditions and climate you have to work with. This will also give you an opportunity to create more diversity in the garden, which naturally limits infestations. The addition of Native plants is an excellent choice to create the right diversity in your yard for a sustainable ecosystem.

Once these changes have been made and you have the “right plant in the right place” then you must employ good cultural practices to ensure future health: Improve you soil with mulch and organic matter, pay careful attention to watering and, very importantly, prune only in the correct season for the individual plant.

Once cultural and environmental problems have been minimized then many garden problems are naturally avoided – think of it as preventative medicine! Healthy plants are naturally able to withstand insect and disease damage and small infestations will work them selves out in a healthy ecosystem. If problems do arise then an IPM approach can then be used with great success.

Where Did All This Water Come From? Addressing Drainage

Jim Mathwig — Tue, 30 Mar 2010 06:05:12 +0000

Water has a close association with life itself. Lush verdant environments thrive on it. Too much water can cause problems too. Before we picture homes sliding down hillsides we picture mold and fungus showing up on lower siding and trim. Many plants languish in saturated soil without air to their roots. You may want to contact a local recommended landscape professional for help with your yard. Let’s look at some drainage basics:

Soil Level. Soil around your house perimeter must always be lower. Code minimum is 6″ to siding. Even if soil level is even with your siding it is highly recommended to maintain a lowered border area even if this means sloping out to a low point six feet out from your house. Even if you can’t deal with all the water in your yard, this border is a priority. Never let landscape bark and leaves accumulate against your house.

Key Questions. To develop a general plan for overall yard drainage ask these questions:

Where are the potential low places to which you can send water away from your house and yard?
If this is into your neighbors yard (instead of the street) is this the natural slope as in a series of houses on a hill (as in normal or unavoidable) or would you be doing your neighbor wrong?
Where are the sources of water, such as roof runoff, all or part of yard sloping toward house, neighbors yard draining into yours?
Do the problems of either source or where to put water indicate a joint project with a neighbor?

Standing Water. Water standing or saturating an area that is away from homes may be okay if drainage is not possible. Plant life will be affected of course, but such an area might be the only solution if you have no access to a lower point.

Dealing with a Low Point. If you do have a low point, the first plan is to contour yard soil so as to drain your yard toward that point. You may have to drain first in what seems like the wrong direction to a low area which is slowly drained by a very gradual low swale which eventually reaches the target point.

French Drains (See my previous article explaining French Drains). One application can be to facilitate good evacuation of water in a very low sloped swale. Even if your collecting swale is flat, you may have succeeded in draining your overall yard. A french drain in a flat swale that leads to a place that can take the water will still work (even if flat!). The other consideration for a french drain is against the house to gather water that gets there in spite of your other efforts. In any case french drains function as a secondary consideration after use of grading.

Plant life. Plant roots need oxygen to survive. You can landscape in raised beds as a way to create sufficient drainage for root systems, but make sure you are not creating a dam in the process. Similarly merely filling in a low spot in your yard without an overall drainage plan usually doesn’t help much. Plant drainage can be created for individual plants to some degree if they aren’t located in saturated soil. When planting my rhododendrons, for instance, I dug holes three feet deep and about that wide. I filled the hole with high quality garden soil plus extra humus (digested plant matter) and a little sand. So far my Rhodies are happy.

Downspouts. Making sure the water coming down your downspouts from your roof makes it to a place that will take it away is important. Some homes have downspouts already piped into the public sewer system.

Special Note: Unfortunately most municipalities send sewer water and all runoff water to the same place tremendously overburdening public sewage treatment systems. There is likely little you can do to participate in a more sustainable model. Perhaps in the future drainage systems will let runoff water bypass the treatment plant (lawn chemicals are not being treated anyhow), while the treatment plant only receives sewage.

Preparing for a Home Painting Project

Michael Grabham — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 07:12:39 +0000

Are you getting ready for an inside home painting project? These steps really help the process run smoothly and end successfully. Exactly what you want, right?

Start Out Right
You’ll enjoy the job more if you get everything together at the start. Organize a tool station in the middle of the area you’ll be working in by gathering together your paint, brushes, rollers, hammers, screwdrivers, plastic bags, plastic wrap, rags, a paint can opener, and drop cloths.

Plan for a Day of Prep
Don’t try to get everything done in one day. Use the day before painting day to gather furniture in the center of the room, patch cracks and holes, put blue painter’s tape around doors and windows, and cover wall and ceiling light fixtures (light bulbs removed, of course!) with large plastic bags.

Clear the Decks
If you can, clear out all the furniture and accessories. Take everything off the walls. If you can’t move everything out, place the furniture and lamps in the middle of the room and cover them with a good drop cloth. Be sure that you tape the cloth around the furniture. Then put a second cover of plastic or old sheet over everything.

Remove All Hardware
It may seem easier to paint around door knobs or cabinet hinges, but unless you’re a very experienced painter, you’re bound to get drips on items. We suggest removing all cabinet knobs and hinges, door knobs, light switch plates and outlet covers, and light fixtures then place in zip top bags. Separate the pieces together in separate bags and clearly mark the contents and location (top left cabinet, bathroom door, etc) you took them from. Once the paint is dry, put the items back. Also a quick side note, this is a great time to clean the hardware!

Don’t Paint Over Problem Walls
If your walls have holes or cracks, fix them before you start with the paint. Any home center or paint store has knowledgeable personnel to guide you to the best products for the job. For example, wide cracks and large holes can be “bridged” with fiberglass tape, spackle will fill small holes and cracks, and texturizing products are available to match your existing wall finish.

Find highly-rated professional licensed painters for help with your painting project.

We hope you find these tips helpful. Good luck with your next project. Please let us know if we can help in any way! Have an Amazing Day.

Garden Mistakes: The Established Garden

Mary Kay Swanson — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 17:52:27 +0000

So if you followed the “rules” for putting in a new garden then you want to make sure your investment will thrive and give you that beautiful garden you worked so hard to get. The work is not over once the garden has established itself but it’s certainly less than when it was growing. It takes many years for a garden to establish itself so don’t mess it up along the way with these 5 garden mistakes we’ve all made!

Here’s a list of practices to avoid in caring for an established garden:

1. Don’t let a few weeds become a million weeds – Weeds seed and grow and seed and grow and we all know this happens as soon as your back is turned! A new planting would have been cleaned out of all weeds, but if you let them come back, or have problems with them in the established garden, the best way to control them is to get the yard fully weeded out, have proper mulching done, and then don’t let them get ahead of you again.

Weeds will flower and seed all year long and the best time to get some control is Fall or Spring when the majority of them are setting seeds. Once they have been wiped out then start doing a regular tour of the garden and pulling any weeds as soon as you see them come up…..and for sure before they flower and seed. This also promotes an excellent habit of checking out the garden often so you will notice problems sooner and can deal with issues right away that might lead to long term problems.

2. Don’t overuse chemicals to control weeds or pests – Make that DON’T use chemicals on your living garden - If I had my way they would all be banned from use anyway so do your back yard, your kids bare feet, your animals that lick their paws and the planet in general a big favor and ban them from your garden too. Lots of information on Organic practices can be found and many landscapers have turned to organic only practices with great success. You can have a beautiful, healthy, and successful garden using nothing but your muscles, some compost and some mulch.

3. Don’t over fertilize - Fertilizer does not feed plants - it feeds the soil which then feeds the plants. We think we are giving them a “meal” but it really does not work that way. If you have healthy soil you can actually kill your plants by adding too much fertilizer and most plants once established in beds that have been properly mulched don’t need any extra fertilizer at all. Native plants will not thrive if fertilizer is used so keep it away from them for sure. If you do need some for your lawn or container plantings use only organic products and BE SURE to follow the directions for amounts.

4. Improper pruning – I have posted some other articles about pruning when and how’s so check them out for more information but most of all don’t prune your plants in the wrong season and don’t top trees!! Pruning in the wrong season or doing it wrong can cause a myriad of problems that sometimes can’t be fixed. So if your not sure consult a recommended landscaper to help get you on the right track. Pruning wrong is maybe the number one mistake I see people make and something that is almost impossible for a plant to bounce back from.

5. Don’t overwater in the Summer - The established garden needs a lot less water than a new one, that much is obvious, but how much can be a riddle for some. Established gardens can actually thrive better by having some, but not too much, supplemental water given to them in the hot months. Making the plants work for their water encourages them to grow deeper roots as they search for ground water. This makes them stronger and less susceptible to being damaged in the harsh weather of other seasons. This is especially true for trees and shrubs. Having you irrigation set to the age of your garden is something people forget to do a few years after a new garden has been put in so have that done if you have an automatic irrigation system. Monitor your garden for what the just right amount is for your landscape thus saving precious water, money and benefiting your landscape to boot.

Garden Mistakes: The New Garden

Mary Kay Swanson — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 19:07:08 +0000

Ahhh, mistakes in the garden – we have all made them and the trouble is that sometimes takes a season or two, or even a few years, before we realize what we have done. When you choose the wrong paint for a room it can be fixed pretty quickly but no so in the garden, so here are some hints on how to take the ‘Oops!’ out of your landscape.

I think the number one rule when starting a new garden, or renovating an old one, is to enlist the help of a experienced, recommended landscaper. This can be essential for a great final product. If your knowledge of gardening is less than pretty advanced you would be doing yourself and your check book a huge favor by working with a professional gardener to help you in the planning process and to keep you away from making costly mistakes. If you want to do the work yourself then at a minimum pay for a consult and consider a design as well. With all the considerations that need to be taken when planning a garden you would be best served by utilizing the knowledge of someone who has made all the mistakes already and learned from them what not to do.

If you do go it alone – or plan on doing the plant purchasing and planting on your own - here are some of the DON’Ts to consider.

Don’t fall in love with those gorgeous displays at the nurseries – An avid gardener knows this lust, you see it and must have it! But is it really the right plant for your location? Do you have room for it? If so, will it enhance the plants already established and play well with the others? All things to consider when that must have feeling hits. Successful and easy to maintain gardens are well planned and introducing a impulse buy plant to the group on a whim can sometimes lead to problems later on. If you just cant help yourself just buy some nice big containers and use them as mini gardens for those plants you just couldn’t say no to. (I do this all the time as I cant help myself either…..nurseries to me are like shoe sales are to Carrie Bradshaw.)
Don’t plant too close together – This is what else happens when you go nuts in the nursery. Planting to close together is instant gratification but all the plants will suffer as they reach full size. Read the tags and make yourself aware of the full grown size of the plant and space accordingly – you’ll be so much happier with the results in the long run, so will all you plants.
Don’t buy plants when in full bloom – This also happens when you fall in love with a full blooming flowering plant and sometimes it just cant be helped - But try to train yourself to look for plants that have new growth, healthy structures and healthy roots rather then a big display of flowers. Some plants actually bloom more when the are in distress – it is their way of trying to make as much seed as possible in case they are getting ready to die! So look for long term health traits instead. If the plant you want is coming into it’s blooming season then try to pick the ones with nice buds so you can enjoy the full flowering season.
Don’t plant in the wrong season – Spring bulbs are planted in the Fall, trees and shrubs are best planted in fall thru winter, and be careful of non-natives that seem complaicent but then explode with growth during the growing season. Most of all dont plant anything in the hot summer months, especially trees and shrubs, unless you plan on not going anywhere that summer and instead plan on staying home and watering every other day for 3 months. Irrigation will not do the right watering for a tree or shrub planted in the summer as they are set for established plantings and the new plants will need more detailed attention to their watering needs.
Don’t take short cuts with site preparation – There is a saying I heard long ago called the 80/20 rule. 80% of your garden budget should be put into soil and bed preparation and the other 20% toward plants. If you give it a good home it will grow. Go this route and you can save some money by buying smaller plants that will thrive and mature faster than if you did little or bad prep and threw in big new plants.

For the next post I will cover the garden mistakes we all tend to make once the garden is in so check in for that!

Find recommended landscape design professionals to help with your garden planning.

Also See: Common mistakes with an existing garden

Indoor House Plant Care

Mary Kay Swanson — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 17:40:59 +0000

How to care for your houseplants and your “indoor garden”

Midwinter can be a tough time for us avid gardeners, there isn’t much to do in the garden and the seed catalogs are just starting to come in to inspire our Spring dreams of vegetable gardens and new planting beds, so what’s a green thumb to do this time of year?

Give those houseplants some love and attention!

Watering in the winter: The amount of water needed in the winter will depend on how high the humidity is in your house and how warm you keep your indoor temperatures. Since most all your plants are usually near windows the relative humidity and temperature may be less then in the middle of the room so a good rule of thumb is too water less frequently but to monitor the soil moistness so you can establish a good watering schedule. The best way to do this is to stick your finger into the soil and if it is very dry over an inch down it is time to water.

Succulents and Cactus need to be watered even less in the winter and since their medium is usually more of a mix of small gravel and perlite than soil it can be harder to use the finger test so use the look at feel of their leaves to determine when they need water. The plumpness of a succulent or cactus is caused by Tuger pressure in the cells of the plant and if the plant needs water the leaves will be less plump and look a little soft and wrinkled - when they start to look like that then it is time to water.

Humidity: Proper Humidity levels are essential and is the key to keeping houseplants happy and with our heaters going in the winter indoor humidity can be a problem. Misting your plants as much as every other day if it is very dry in your house can be very helpful to your plants overall health and vigor and can even add the little extra humidity we humans need to keep our nasal passages from getting too dry and irritated in the winter. Another way to increase humidity is to place your plants on a humidity tray which is basically a saucer filled with gravel or decorative stones that you fill with water. The evaporation from the tray or saucer will provide extra humidity to the air around the plants and the home in general. Having one of those outdoor/indoor weather stations can be very helpful in determining the general humidityof your home as it will give you a reading of both the indoor and outdoor temperatures and humidity levels. Around 50% humidity is the best for inside your house not just for your plants but for you and your pets too. High humidity levels can cause molds and mildew to form and also create diseases in your houseplants which can then aggravate mildew growth and your nasal passages, so getting a good reading and adjusting accordingly can be a great enhancer to all the living things in your home.

Light: In general East and West facing windows are best for houseplants. Most all house plants want bright but not direct light – if you seen sunburn marks on your leaves adjust the plant so it is not in the direct sunlight. Succulents, Cactus and plants with tropical origins need as much as 12 hours of daylight, which can be difficult to come by in our dark PNW winters, so add a supplemental light source on a timer for these plants. Full spectrum bulbs that mimic the spectrum of the sun’s light can be easily purchased and may even help your own moods feel better in the middle of winter. Besides a nice, easy to look at light, shining down on all your healthy green plants is enough to make anyone feel a little better in January!

Fertilizer: It is best to forgo the fertilizer in the winter months as even your houseplants have a light “dormancy” period that is healthy for them to go through in the winter. As the temperatures warm up come Spring and you maybe start to open a window or two your houseplants will come out of their dormancy and this is a great time to fertilize. A water soluble fertilizer mixed at 1/4th strength is a good choice and can be used each time you water.

Pests: Check your plants often for signs of pests as dealing with a possible infestation right away is the best way to manage an outbreak. Wiping off foliage with a damp cloth both removes dust and can increase humidity. The most common indoor house plant pests are white fly, aphids and spider mites. If you find them immediatly wipe the leaves witha wet cloth and spray with Neemoil or another organic pest control. Using a drop cloth under the plant you spray will help keep the floor or furniture from getting the spray on it.

Indoor Plant trouble signs to watch for and their causes:

Sudden defoliation: Happens with too drastic a change in environment. Example; plants that get a draft from a door opening to the outside regularly or that are too near a heat source.
Lower leaves turn yellow and drop: Over watering.
Bleached spots on leaves: sunburn – too much light or artificial lights are too close.
Lanky new growth: Not enough light and/or too much fertilizing.
Does not flower if supposed to: Not enough light.
Leaf tips brown: Too cold, not enough humidity, lack of proper watering. (watering too much and then too little)
Wilt: Can be either too much water and the roots are rotting or not enough water…..you will know which by your watering habits.
Leaf margins brown: Over fertilizing and/or too low humidity.

Quick cures for sad plants: If your doing everything right and your plant still seems sad then try top dressing the soil with 1-2 inches of humus which will provide needed nutrients, help with moisture retention and boost overall health. Use a bagged material from your local garden store so as not to import any diseases or pests…..DONT use the compost for your out door garden or any other out door soil.

Transplanting: If all else fails and your plant has been in the same pot for years it may be time to re pot. This can and actually should be done indoors so as not to shock your plant witha drastic temperature change. L:aying down a big drop cloth will make for an easy clean up…..it’s also a nice project for relieving that winter garden fever!

Use a sharp tool to loosen the soil around the edges of the pot.
Gently remove the plant and prune off any dead or damaged roots that you can see. Don’t break up the root ball to find dead roots though, try to keep the root ball as intact as possible.
Have a new pot ready that is around 1-2 inches in diameter larger than your former pot and add some drainage rocks to the bottom of the pot.
Add enough soil - lightly tamped down – to the bottom of the pot so that the crown of your plants root ball will rest about an inch below the top of your new pot – gently add soil to fill in around the root ball and lightly tamp down.
Gently water all the surface of the soil with lukewarmwater until it starts to run out of the bottom of the pot – you want to water enough to help settle the new soil against the root ball and not have any air pockets remain. (I do this in my bathtub to reduce the mess and keep my drop cloth dry) top dress with a little more soil if needed so the crown of the root ball is not sticking up from the soil – but don’t smother it – too deep and it will rot, too shallow and it will dry out.
Place the newly potted plant in a low light area for a week or so to give it a chance to readjust before putting it back in its regular location.

Enjoy the glory of your indoor “garden” !! Some professional landscape companies have indoor plant divisions and most highly-rated professional gardeners have a good knowledge base about how to get the most out of your indoor plants if you need help with diagnosing problems or transplanting.