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Home Renovations    -   Landscapping and Plants

• Urban Gardener
  A lush and bountiful crop can be yours even if your garden consists of a balcony, a patio, or a windowsill. If you have the gardening 'bug' but not the space, take heart in some solutions for growing a healthy mini-garden. Proper light, soil and watering can help you grow fresh additions to your meals. [ read more ]
  
  
• Landscaping with Stone
  Stone walls not only complement and enhance landscaping, they become enduring and unique features. Unlike wooden fences and retaining walls, stone walls will never rot or require repainting. If properly constructed, they will stand the test of time. Ireland is a beautiful example of the charm and durability of stone walls. Although the early peoples and their wooden structures are distant memories, they have left a legacy in stone. [ read more ]
  
  
• A Green Thumb can Increase the Value of your Home
  Gardeners know that you reap what you sow. From a profusion of colourful flowers in pots at an entranceway to the most expansive yard, the first thing most visitors to your home will notice is the surrounding landscaping or "curb appeal". [ read more ]
  
  
• How to Hire a Landscaper
  Professional landscaping can add beauty and value to a home. As any backyard gardener will tell you, shoveling, planting, seeding and watering are no easy tasks. Hiring a landscaper with the necessary expertise can save you time and effort. Large landscaping projects can cost thousands of dollars so it is imperative to take certain precautions in the hiring process. [ read more ]
  
  
• Container Gardens: Tips for the Urban Gardener
  Container gardens are the answer for people with space limitations who want to enjoy the bountiful benefits of growing plants at home. A patio, windowsill, balcony, pathway, porch or doorway can provide enough light to produce healthy vegetables, herbs, and flowers. Often, the most difficult part of container gardening is deciding what plants to grow and knowing how to get started. Provided below are some useful suggestions for successful plant growth in a contained urban garden. [ read more ]
  
  
• Spring Garden Preparation Project #1: Drip Irrigation
  Spring heralds a time of new growth. Our gardens come to life with the first hyacinths and the serene unfolding of delicate shoots and buds. If you're like most Canadian gardeners, spring also ushers in new garden projects. Have you resolved to make your garden the envy of the neighbourhood this year? The first steps to a beautiful garden are creating a good foundation or framework. All the effort you put into to your garden could be in vain if the final result appears haphazard. Attractive landscaping begins with a piece of paper, a pencil and a plan. [ read more ]
  
  
• Spring Garden Preparation Project #2: Improving the Soil
  Some scientists estimate there are more species of organisms in one cubic foot of soil than there are species of mammals ranging over our entire planet. Soil is alive with beetles, worms, bacteria, and a host of other visible and microscopic creatures which enhance the soil. It becomes a living medium rich in nutrients for plant life. Decomposing plant life then feeds this vast number of organisms. This cycle, repeated over millions of years, has formed a deep layer of topsoil on a planet which began as water and rock. The healthiest gardens are rooted in a good mix of organic and inorganic material and a respect for the life that fuels this ancient cycle. [ read more ]
  
  
• Spring Garden Preparation Project #3: Spring Bulbs
  Bulbs remain underground, half-forgotten and untended until they burst into flower in the bask of spring's first warm rays. Long before the rest of the garden seems to be growing, daffodils and tulips emerge with brilliant blooms. [ read more ]
  
  
• Winter Composting
  All the wonderful excesses of the holidays lingers on in the last few decorations we can't bear to take down, the rich scent of pine permeating the house, that expanded waistline… The New Year is the time to start afresh, to resolve to spend more time with your kids, eat right and maybe just maybe get more exercise but have you thought of making some New Year's resolutions for your house? [ read more ]
  
  
• Indoor Plants for the Lazy Gardener
  Outside the trees are bare. A cold wind blows relentlessly from grey skies. Right about now something green and alive sounds awfully appealing. An indoor plant might be just what you need. But wait. Are you lacking that proverbial green thumb? Fear not. There are numerous plants that can survive the most extreme lack of attention. You just need to find the right plant. The following ranks the top performers from low-maintenance to moderate care. [ read more ]
  
  
• The Sloping Garden
  Sloped gardens - the ones we love to hate. The curse of many view properties. But without them, the breathtaking views we love to brag about would not exist. And then we'd be sad. [ read more ]
  
  
• Lush Lawns with Less Water
  With drought conditions occurring across the Prairies and parts of Ontario, water conservation has become more important that ever. Yet you may be surprised to learn that the average Canadian uses over 350 litres of water every day! Where does it all go? A five-minute shower with a standard showerhead uses 100 litres of water (versus 35 litres with a low-flow showerhead). Flushing a standard toilet uses 16 litres. Other common household uses include washing clothes, cooking, drinking and cleaning. It's easy to see how water use adds up. [ read more ]
  
  
• Privacy Please! Creating a Backyard Retreat
  Are you feeling a little too close to your neighbours? Do their children sound like they're right in your backyard even when they aren't? Does having company for dinner mean you just open your curtains? If you're craving an oasis from the hustle and bustle of daily life it may be time to put up some walls-green, living walls that is. [ read more ]
  
  
• The Edible Garden
  Fresh vegetables and herbs not only taste great they also have optimum levels of vitamins and flavour. A salad of just-picked romaine lettuce, radishes and a few chive spikes can make any meal memorable and healthy. If you want to have a garden but don't have a backyard, never fear. You can transform a balcony or patio into a lush retreat brimming with a wide variety of edible plants. [ read more ]

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Glenys has answers to your questions and more professional tips to make your real estate transaction more pleasurable. Call or e-mail Glenys or click on "Ask Your Own Questions." Glenys can send you information on any Property Listed For Sale on the Multiple Listing Service in the Halifax area. If you would like her to help you locate a home, please fill out her Information Request Form. Surfing the Real Estate Board's web site or MLS.CA and found a house that you like but doesn't give you the civic address. Glenys can also help. Just fill out her Would like an address form, please ! Or perhaps you are considering selling your home in the near future, she can also offer you a Free No-Obligation Market Evaluation Form

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