Get Your Garden Clean Up into Gear
Start your garden cleanup to get it winter-ready and you’ll be doing less work come spring, as well as doing your part for the environment. Here are a few tips for getting your garden cleanup into gear.
Mulch and Compost
The most environmentally-friendly way of dealing with fallen leaves is to mulch and then, if desired, to compost them. Using your lawnmower’s mulcher not only saves you from raking and bagging, but provides free mulch and compost for your garden.
Once mulched, spread a layer at least 16 cm deep on top of your vegetable garden, flower beds, and even your lawn. The worms will mix it in! Mulching will help the soil retain moisture, protect it from heat, cold and wind, and also inhibit the growth of weeds.
Deposit any remaining leaf mulch into your compost bin. Making compost from your leaf mulch is a longer, more complicated endeavour. It requires the addition of organic material such as kitchen waste, which then needs to be mixed, watered and turned over in order for the material to decompose over time. The result is a nutrient-rich humus that will feed a thriving garden.
Eco-friendly cleanup
Start from the top by removing dead limbs from trees before heavy winter snow weakens them, causing further damage to your property. Prune hedges and overgrown bushes and cut back anything that touches your house walls.
Clear your vegetable garden by digging out old plants and shriveled vines. Add them to your compost and till the plot well. Top with several inches of compost and cover with mulch. In your flower garden, discard spent annuals and pooped-out perennials. You can save the seeds of annuals in an envelope and store in a cool, dark place to plant in the spring.
For the Birds
There’s no need to cut back on everything in your garden, making it look severe and barren. Many plants look great until a serious frost, and it’s good to leave some stalks and vegetation for the birds. Clean out birdhouses and scrub birdbaths with baking soda and cleaning vinegar. Vinegar is safer than bleach and any residue will not harm birds or surrounding grass or plants.
A simple fall cleanup will protect your garden during winter, and give your little pocket of nature a head start in spring!
National Garage Sale for Shelter
It’s that time of year again!
We are gearing up for the 8th Annual National Garage Sale for Shelter!
SOUTHWINDS CROSSING – Oliver, BC
8:00 AM – 1:00 May 7th, 2016
Please call 250-498-6222 for more information
The National Garage Sale for Shelter is an annual one-day charity garage sale to raise money for women’s shelters and violence prevention programs with the support of Royal LePage offices across Canada. Since 2009, we’ve raised 2 million dollars at the National Garage Sale for Shelter in order to stop the cycle of violence and provide a safe haven and new beginnings to women and children.
Mark your calendars! The 8th Annual National Garage Sale for Shelter and BBQ will take place Saturday, May 7th, 2016.
We are accepting gently used goods through our office until May 6, 2016. Call us to arrange for a suitable drop off time!
Want to help but don’t want to donate? We also accept volunteers!
100% of the proceeds of the Garage Sale stay here locally and benefit the Desert Sun Counselling and Resource Centre
650 McCuddy Creek Road
Tech savvy homebuyers begin online
When buying a home, there was a time when we began with a drive around the neighbourhood with a real estate agent. Today, most home buyers begin their homebuying journey online.
As technology has evolved over the last decade, homebuyers are more knowledgeable about their needs, desires and what they can afford. This is a welcome change since more informed buyers make for a better experience for everyone involved.
Here are some of the ways to put real estate at your fingertips through the online tools available:
• Many homebuyers begin online at www.realtor.ca where photographs, descriptions, maps, and 3D virtual tours can be found.
• The royallepage.ca website and app are popular choices to research neighbourhood information including schools, amenities and even walkability scores.
• Buyers can research agents within a specific area of interest on royallepage.ca. Agent information includes languages spoken and areas of expertise.
• Mortgage rates are available through banking and lender sites. These sites often provide tips on organizing your finances, mortgage calculators and answers to your mortgage-related questions. Pre-approval applications for your mortgage are also available.
• Homeowners can also organize a flawless move with tips and web forms to arrange for a free moving estimate on royallepage.ca.
With technology evolving as quickly as it has, the notion of holding up a smartphone to a home for sale and instantly garnering many of the details, is not far off. Your real estate agent provides an important role in marketing the home, negotiating the best price and pulling together the important details of the final sale. And, when homeowners are better prepared through today’s technology, it makes the process of buying or selling a home that much smoother.
A New Year’s Resolution for us all
Sun rising over planet Earth
Killer Closets
Whether you have a huge walk-in or a tiny reach-in closet, rooting through wrinkled piles of clothes every morning isn’t a particularly soothing way to start your day. Here are some ideas on turning storage space that’s killing you into a “killer” closet.
Purge.
Go through everything in your closet and get rid of anything you don’t wear. Be relentless. If you haven’t worn it in a year, toss it.
Store your off-season stuff.
Put your summer clothes into airtight storage containers and stow them on a shelf, under your bed, or in your storage room, laundry room or attic.
Plan.
Understand what you need to put in your closet. Hundreds of shoes? Lots of long dresses? Work shirts and pants? Design for your needs with rods and shelves set at different heights:
– Rods hung at 64″ (162 cm) are good for floor-length gowns, robes and coats.
– Rods at 54″ (137 cm) work for shorter dresses and pants hung by the cuff.
– 38″- 42″ (96 – 107 cm) accommodates shirts, jackets and folded pants.
– Double your hanging space by using a rod that can be hooked directly onto the one above – no carpentry skills needed!
Think 360º.
Use every inch of available space. Add a shelf just below the ceiling to store extra blankets. Put hooks onto any open wall space. Install a shoe rack on the back of the closet door. Use roll-out storage boxes on the floor.
Customize.
Utilize every inch of space with a customized closet system. You can do it yourself with a range of options available at your local home improvement store – including expandable systems that don’t require cutting or installation tools. Alternatively, work with a professional or company that specializes in closets. They can be pricey, so be specific about what you want and shop around.
Design in visibility.
Instead of using closet drawers where you can only see the top layer of clothing, install wire baskets or see-through plastic bins. Stack sweaters and t-shirts on open shelves piled 3-4 high so you can pull out the bottom item without knocking over the whole pile.
Make a spot for shoes.
Keep the floor tidy and your shoes protected. Build in cubbyholes, slanted shelving, or use clear plastic boxes. Pocket-style shoe racks or canvas shoe “shelves” suspended from a rod are good options for quick and easy installation.
Go with good hangers.
Wood, padded or sturdy plastic hangers help keep the shape of your clothes. Avoid wire hangers – they do horrible things to shoulders and get tangled easily. Recycle wire hangers at your local dry cleaner.
Image courtesy of Rubbermaid.
The new South Okanagan Homes blog
Welcome to our new home 🙂
