Summertime and Your Garden

Summer time is the favorite time of the year for many. It is certainly not cold outside, the weather should be quite warm. You can spend so many summer nights outside having a barbecue session or simply relaxing in your flowery garden. The garden, oh yeah. We should not forget it needs attention during the summer, too. Perhaps, it requires even more regular care and it certainly needs a different type of care than usual. So what is the way to achieve having a nice garden which will last throughout the whole summer?

Do not forget to water and fertilize! When the weather is extremely hot, the soil dries out and it just needs to be watered. Late evenings, when the temperature cools down is the best time watering, as the overheated soil will not be unpleasantly shocked by very cool water. Also, fertilizing is quite important. Do not be too active with either of these activities, though. They might be harmful if you repeat them too often.

Another key activity is pruning! There are people who are scared to cut even those parts of trees or plants which essentially need it. That is one of the greatest gardening mistakes one can make, in my opinion. In case there is a dead head, the plant essentially needs pruning! Do not even think about it, just do it! It would probably end up completely destroyed otherwise.

Looks are important! Sculptures, wooden wheels or fountains form a part of many nice gardens. How many times have you stopped to look at them in someone's garden? Make them a part of yours, too! They might be a pretty good source of shadow or water, and thus not only attractive but also very useful. Nowadays, there are thousands of opportunities to make a garden look fabulous, just open your eyes and search a little! No need to go far from your home. Garage sales even in your neighborhood, for instance, can provide you with pretty and interesting items.

It is also important, in case you are leaving your house for a longer time, not to forget to ask someone to regularly water and check your garden. If you just left it here with nobody to look after it, it could be damaged after couple of very hot, dry days.

How to Keep the Temperature in Your Home within Pleasant Limits in the Hot Months

Is your icebox one of the most often visited places in your home during the summer time? Is your house so unpleasantly hot that you dream you lived in Iceland? Millions of homeowners in Toronto and elsewhere are impacted by this problem every summer. We are bringing you some advice on how to get ready for the next hot summer.

The easiest option: Air-conditioners

The internal temperature of our houses can be decreased by more ways, let's take a short look at them. The most effective, but most expensive, is the well-known air-conditioner. If you want to get the best value possible from your AC unit, there are several tips to follow - of course if you decide to go this way. First, pick a machine of the correct size according to the size of your house or condo. If you have a common family home with two bedrooms, look for units with around 5,000 btu - that should be enough. Ideally, the unit should be placed in a window on the wall that faces north, if that is possible. This will ensure optimum conditions for the unit which will allow it to operate more efficiently. Clean the internal filters at least once a month to prevent house dust from building up and having a negative effect on its operation. If you know you won't be home for more than an hour, just turn the AC off and then after your return re-cool the rooms, this way it is more economical.

Solutions for green-thinking customers

But what to do if you think more eco-friendly and don't want to use precious energy for these power-hungry machines? Well, there are more ways to decrease the internal temperature without adding to global warming by excessive and unnecessary use of CO2 producing fossil fuels. We will begin with the top of your house and go downwards step by step.

Roof

As you might already know, the amount of heat transferred depends on the sort of material it goes through. Tiles, shingles or other sorts of roofing materials are a perfect example of this. If you wish to save on air-conditioning, think about applying a good-quality insulation to your attic space. A 12-inch layer instead of a 3-inch might reduce the cooling costs by as much as 10 percent.

To read the rest of the story, please follow the Keeping your Toronto home cool article.

Photo by jon starbuck