Unleash Your Creative Gardening This Spring

I don’t know about you, but I take walks in the neighborhood in the summer and I always stop and admire well-organized gardens, coordinated collars, and green lush lawn. In fact, we drive to Holland Michigan every year to attend the tulip festival and enjoy the great collections of tulips of all colors.

In addition to colors and beauty, we plant a host of vegetables and herbs every year and we enjoy exchanging crops with our neighbors and friends.

Getting our gardens looking good and ready for planting is no accident. It is a lot of work and most it is done early. With the snow hopefully gone and the weather is warming up, it is time to prepare the garden. We will be bringing you tips on how to prepare your garden for planting flowers and vegetables. Please let us know what you are looking for to bring it to you directly to your smartphone and send us your photos of your gardens at [email protected]

---

How to grow a vegetable garden in Michigan

Michigan has a relatively short growing season, but you can still enjoy a variety of vegetables and bring fresh produce to your table. It all rests on when and where to plant, what to plant for the cold and the warm season, and how to maintain it. Read more …

---

Creative Gardener

Toss a variety of seeds around the yard for easy, beneficial plantings.

I’ll let you in on a little secret — I am a mass polluter. Every fall I walk through my small garden and gather seeds from the native perennials. I have a little paper lunch bag for each plant (nearly 100), labeled and dated, that I store the seeds in. Sometimes I take a mix of six to 10 plants, put them in one bag, drive down the nearest rural road, and hang the bag out of my car window until it’s empty. I have yet to see anything sprout alongside the road’s edge, but a guy can hope. Do you have a little bit of this in you, too? Ever wondered about spreading seeds everywhere to create a creative natural garden? Read more

---

Natural Swimming Pools: More Beauty, No Chemicals

Keep your skin and the environment healthy with a pool that cleans itself, naturally

Summer’s heat is not far behind the bursting of spring blooms and windy rains. This summer, imagine yourself cooling off by floating in a backyard pool that feels immersed in nature.

Natural swimming pools use plants or a combination of plants and sand filters to keep the water clean and clear without chemicals. They were developed in Austria and Germany in the 1980s and have since grown in popularity worldwide. They can be designed in a multitude of ways: Some look like natural ponds; others may be disguised as standard tiled pools.

Whatever look you are trying to achieve, the principles of function are the same for both natural swimming pools and traditional ones. But natural pools are better for your hair and skin because they’re chemical-free. Click here for more.

---

How to Grow Your Own Sweet Summer Crops

Got a garden patch and a hankering for the freshest veggies and berries? This guide will get even urban gardeners farming

Summer is the height of the gardening season. Farmer’s markets and roadside stands are filled with fresh produce, while home gardens are at the peak of production. It’s a time when eating fresh and healthy is easy and enticing.

To reach this stage, you need to start early — in late winter and early spring. That’s the time to plan for those important first steps that need to be done before you even think about planting your first seeds. Read more …

---

Preparing your garden:

For a start, Better Homes and Garden magazine recommends the following to prepare the garden:

Check for signs of growth: Did you remember to plant snow crocus last fall? If not, cut forsythia or magnolia branches to bring inside for forcing to get a dose of early spring color.

Prep the beds: Remove winter mulch or, if well composted, work into the top layer of the soil. Work in some leaf mold or well-rotted manure, too.

Prune: Now is the time to trim fruit trees if you didn’t prune in winter. Prune before buds begin to break into bloom or you’ll stress the tree and get a tiny crop (or possibly none).

Perform basic maintenance: Check stonework for frost heaves. Check and clean the deck now so you don’t have to do it later; make any repairs.

Start seeds indoors: You’ve spent the winter reading seed and plant catalogs, so try some.

Learn more about seed-starting.

Plant veggies: Hardy vegetables, such as onions, potatoes, artichokes, and some lettuces, should be planted now.

Divide perennials: Before plants have begun spring growth is a good time to divide many perennials. Share some divisions with your friends this year.

---

 

Spring Pruning Guide for Trees and Shrubs Here is a spring pruning guide for trees and shrubs. The Old Farmer’s Almanac presents a guide to when and how to prune specific varieties of trees and shrubs.

Forcing Branches into Bloom I bet the first thing you notice is plants with plenty of flowers, especially the ones with more flowers than leaves. Here are a few tips on how to make your plants explode with blooms and colors.

 

---

How to build raised beds for your veggies, plants or herbs

If you are tired of your old backyard or if you want to farm your parking strip, planting boxes are good solutions. They would allow you to control weed, organize your plants and herbs and beautify concrete boring spaces. Some people make the boxes themselves while others hire companies to design the layout and make the boxes in interesting and appropriate applications. Whatever you do, make sure you do it right to add beauty to your yard or front spaces. Read more …..

 

From Around the Web:

 

20 Best Perennials for Your Garden: Here’s an easy-grow collection of the best perennial flowers that are perfect for any beginner gardener.

The Best Perennials for Shade:Brighten up shady spots in your landscape with these easy-to-grow plants that come back year after year.

The Best New Shade Perennials: Electrify the darkest corners of your landscape with shade-loving perennial flowers. Here are some top picks for 2014.

24 of the Easiest Houseplants: Grow these no-fuss houseplants to bring life and color to your home. Most live with minimum care.

 

---

HOME IMPROVEMENT TIPS

Complete guide on home improvement
Want to repair a nail hole in a wall? Drill through ceramic tile? Solder copper? The experts at DIY Network share tips for home-improvement and repair projects. Continue Reading

---

How to Start Saving Energy

There are several simple actions you can take to save energy.

Continue reading

---

Kitchen Countertop: 5 More Great Alternatives to Granite

Get a delightfully different look for your kitchen counters with lesser-known materials for a wide range of budgets.

Sure, granite and quartz make for fine kitchen countertop choices. But they’re not right for everyone. Before you settle on the regular old mainstays, consider some of these alternatives.

Click here for more on different and new counters

---

Ideas for renovating your bathroom

Even though it is one of the smallest rooms in the house, having a high-quality washroom shouldn’t be an afterthought; after all, a bathroom remodel is one of the most worthwhile home investments you can make.

It might not be cheap, but adding updates — like a new bathtub, walk-in shower and double sinks — will increase the overall value, quality and comfort of your home. Read more