At Home 2011

ATHome Look Inside...

• Make Your Garden Glisten with Glass • How Secure is Your Home?

• Bird Watching - Fun for the Whole Family

2011

A Special Advertising Supplement to the Lewiston Tribune

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lewiston tribune

T H URS D A Y, O C TOBER 2 0 , 2 0 1 1

Lots of oohs and ahhs in cozy yet spacious home

By Peggy J. Hayden

Of Target Publications

S

teve Stroschin’s 10-month-old ranch-style house in the Clarkston Heights reverberates hominess.

From a quaint courtyard that welcomes guests to the openness of the interior layout Stroschin put his own ideas to work in this 2,800-square-foot home.

The front door opens into a foyer that is both cozy and spacious, complete with a coat closet and a powder room for guests.

Stroschin was very involved in the building of his home and took every idea he had to the architect. He said through the entire process he was only talked out of one idea and he wishes he wouldn’t have given in.

“My one thing is, that I would say to somebody, is if it’s something you thought of and that you wanted, don’t let anybody talk you out of it,” Stroschin said.

The living room has 10-foot-high ceilings and engineered wood floors.

The gas fireplace has a mantel and inset made for a flat-screen TV above it and two functional benches on either side for extra seating.

To one side the seat lifts for blankets and larger items to be stored. On the other side, the bench has doors that open in the front with shelves to hide electronic equipment. Yet both benches are identical in appearance.

There are Frenchstyle doors that lead from the indoor living area to an outdoor living space complete with a built-in gas fire pit and a water feature that brings some of the indoor modernness to the outdoors.

Stroschin had the home built with lots of storage space and every area of the house was planned to make it multifunctional.

The kitchen is in full view of the living room with a bar-style island separating the two rooms.

No one should say this contemporary kitchen doesn’t have enough cupboard space with an entire wall of cabinets and wide drawers. The cupboards are all natural finished cherrywood.

There is a closetsized pantry and more cabinets and drawers throughout the rest of the kitchen.

It is equipped with modern stainless steel appliances and light fixtures. The countertops are granite and the wall behind the stove is a unique 1-inch glass and travertine tile that gives a texture and flare to the kitchen.

A bar-style island separates the kitchen from the living room and provides a dining area.

To the side of the kitchen is a dining room

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that Stroschin uses as a separate seating area, since he is a bachelor who doesn’t need a formal dining area.

On the other side of the kitchen is a laundry room complete with a sun tube, a space designed for an upright freezer, a coat closet for his coats, cupboards and built-in shelves.

On the other end of the room is a door to the two-car garage.

The garage doors face east. Inside the garage is where the heater and extra large hot water tank can be found.

Across the way from the laundry room is a roughly 8-foot by 9foot storage room with shelves lining the walls, which can be removed to create a small office area.

Stroschin wanted the room to be versatile, so he had it built with a window and electrical outlets for use other than storage.

Between the two rooms is an ingenious and unique area with a “catch-all” counter

and drawers for mail and other items that typically pile up on the dining table or wherever such items land.

The flow of the house from one room to the next makes for easy movement throughout.

G o i n g back through the kitchen Tribune/Barry Kough and walking through the ABOVE: The master bath features a 49-square-foot tile shower living room to with seven shower heads and a door that leads outside. BELOW: the west side The back splash is made of 1-inch glass and travertine tiles that of the house provide a unique look. you find three may need to get ready There are his and bedrooms and two full bathrooms. at the same time. It has hers sinks and the toiThe master suite is a 49-square-foot show- let is set in an enclosed spacious with a seat- er with seven shower room.

There is plenty of ing or exercise area, a heads and a door to the room so two people can large walk-in closet that outside. prepare for the day includes plenty of builtwithout bumping into in organizational space each other. for him and her, and a Each of the other two door to the backyard. rooms are large enough The master bath is to have a queen-sized ideal for couples who bed and a dresser in them while still leaving plenty of walk-around space.

The two bedrooms have a shared bathroom between them, which also has his and hers sinks and an enclosed toilet room. This bathroom has a large jet tub and a roomy shower.

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T H U R S D A Y, O C T O B E R 2 0 , 2 0 1 1

3F

LEWISTON TRIBUNE

Fall is time to aerate, fertilize and seed

By KATHY VAN MULLEKOM

The coming winter and colder temperatures call for a change in lawn care, with several granular fertilizing products available depending on lawn needs.

DAILY PRESS NEWPORT NEWS, VA.

If your lawn is ragged and tired looking from the hot, dry summer, fall is the time to get it back into good shape.

Now through Thanksgiving is the season to aerate, seed and fertilize your cool-season fescue grass so roots grow deep and healthy while temperatures are moderate.

Spring is the wrong time for major lawn care because your shallow-rooted new grass will struggle when summer’s scorching temperatures arrive.

Tired from mowing grass all summer?

Think of fall lawn care as the efficient way to get your recommended 10,000 daily steps done toward a healthy heart while beautifying your property at the same time.

To aerate, use a coretype aerator that removes 2- to 3-inch plugs of soil.

This allows air and water to penetrate the soil, especially if it’s compacted or clay heavy. Don’t worry about the plugs lying on top of the lawn because rain will break them down.

MCT

For organic fertilizer, apply a ½ to 1-inch layer of aged compost before or after you aerate. The healthier your soil, the healthier your grass. Good soil is filled with microorganisms, worms and other beneficial life forms, so resist the urge to use lawn chemicals that will ruin this natural balance.

on the dead plant tissue of the thatch layer at the soil surface, thereby reducing that problem buildup.

Thatching, or removing that buildup, is not necessary if you use a mulching mower and cut often so the grass clippings are small and can readily decompose to return nutrients and moisture back into your soil. ď Ź Humic acids that stimulate plants and soil microbes, and mycorrhizae that attach to roots and help plants absorb more water and nutrients while in turn feeding themselves on plant sap.

To learn more about Seed after you’ve put The Lazyman Soil Doc- passage of moisture and lawn care the LazyMan down the compost and tor program does most of nutrients. way, visit www.outside aerated. Keep the seed your fall lawn care in one ď Ź Microbes that feed pride.com. moist until it germinates easy step. All you need is and water when there is a hose-end sprayer to apno rainfall. Try to wait 30 ply the all-natural prodNot Just days before mowing new uct that includes: grass. ď Ź Polymers that penAntiques! —— etrate hard soil and alHome Decor ternately attract or repel Furniture Looking for the lazy water molecules, opening way out? pathways to admit free Collectables Art

Home security systems can give peace of mind

By ALAN HEAVENS

OF THE PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER

make sure you know the financial costs of early cancellation if you are not happy. Many security companies place limits on their liability if a break-in occurs, even through their negligence.

Unmonitored security systems have on-site sirens and flashing lights that alert your neighbors of a breakin, meaning that you’ll be relying on them instead of an alarm company to contact police if you aren’t home.

State Farm recommends contacting your local police department before you talk to security-system providers, to find out how long it takes to respond to a call and to discuss fines for false alarms, which, after two or three freebies, can start to add up.

Consumer Reports warns about scams. Be wary, for instance, if the representative does not take time to assess your home’s vulnerabilities or does not discuss alarm-system details, alarm-notification procedures, and the company’s call center. Companies with “vans ready to install your system today� are another tipoff.

Quality alarm systems combine audible and silent alarms triggered by sensors throughout the home, not just on doors and windows.

Consumer Reports suggests a combination of sensor technologies for fewer false alarms and better accuracy. Silent alarms notify the monitoring station, which contacts the police.

Audible alarms may scare a burglar off.

Some insurance companies offer a discount on annual premiums of 2 percent to 15 percent to homeowners who install security systems approved by the insurer — especially if there is a fire-detection component. As for that commonsense component of home security, some of it is as simple as cutting back trees and shrubs that may hide your house from view.

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More and more American homes are being burglarized, the Associated Press reports — all in pursuit of gold, whose price recently hit $1,891 an ounce.

Gold rings, gold chains, gold bracelets, gold earrings. Getting rid of them is easy — they can be melted down and sold, no evidence left, unlike hot TVs or laptops.

For homeowners, there are at least a couple of ways to look at this distressing trend. First: How to protect your house from break-ins.

Second: How to keep your losses to a minimum if a burglary does occur.

The New York-based Insurance Information Institute says burglars won’t find your home an “easy mark� if they are forced to work in the light, have to take a lot of time breaking in, or can’t enter without making a lot of noise. Research shows that if it takes more than four or five minutes to break into a house, the intruder will go elsewhere.

Thus, deterring burglars is a blend of common sense and expense.

Let’s start with expense, as in security systems.

Eighty percent of home-

owners with burglar alarms — in a recent, nationally representative survey by the Consumer Reports National Research Center — rated their systems effective at protecting their homes.

Consumer Reports magazine says homeowners should expect to pay $1 to $2 per square foot for a complete system, and about $25 per month for monitoring.

If you buy a system, the website Homesecurity.org says, costs start at $400 to $500 for a 1,200-square-foot home. If you lease a system, start-up expenses range from zero to $99, plus the costs of a monitoring package.

The insurance company State Farm describes monitored systems as those in which a private company keeps watch 24 hours a day, every day, alerting police if something goes wrong and you cannot be contacted.

Monitoring subscriptions can run from month to month or up to 36 months, Homesecurity.org says, adding that you should obtain multiple quotes “to ensure you are getting the best value.� The website offers tips for assessing the type of system that’s best for your house, as well as for comparing prices of alarm companies.

If you sign a contract,

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SPACIOUS > Continued from PAGE 2F dows and the house itself is made of energy efficient insulating concrete forms. Besides the gas fireplace there is central air and heating throughout.

This is the second house Stroschin has had built, but with the

first one he left it to the builders, having no input into what materials were used or how the finished house looked.

He decided that with this house there was a particular way he wanted it to look and feel, so he went about piecing ideas together.

Stroschin suggests

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T H URS D A Y, O C TOBER 2 0 , 2 0 1 1

Backyard birding is fun, and cheap, for the whole family

By Norman Winter

would not be as enjoyable without the host of birds.

The enthusiasts with safari shirts, Tilley hats and If there is one thing I the high-end cameras give have come to learn over further testimony to their the last few months is that importance.

But what about your birds make the landscape!

The National Butterfly home — can you duplicate Center has every native it without looking like a plant imaginable for but- wildlife refuge? The anterflies but the garden swer is an unequivocal yes. Birdbaths and feeders are readily available at all garden centers and can put you on the road to identifying birds you never knew were around.

Attracting an assortment of colorful birds to your landscape is a project the •Custom Home Designs whole family can enjoy.

Bird feeders can be •Remodels great educational projects for children. They open a ams...

Your dre eprint! whole new world by givlu B d ing children the responsie h is in to a f bility for choosing the location and maintaining a 247 Thain Rd., Suite 107 feeder. Armed with a bird Make feathered friends with a backyard bird feeder, Lewiston guide or encyclopedia, illustration. your child will be identifying the feasting birds ter armed with a guide supply water for drinking and bathing. They not only in your yard in no time. book or two. are functional but can beBirds need more than Even the most advanced www.qdplans.com birder comes to our cen- just food. Birdbaths will come an attractive focal point in the landscape.

Just today I watched seven Greater Kiskadees all gathered around a bird bath. Though you might not have them in your region you are sure to have some every bit as enjoyable to watch. But you have to provide the water.

Here at the National Butterfly Center we don’t provide birdhouses, but of the McClatchyTribune News Service

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as depicted in this photo do have great nesting opportunities in native trees and shrubs. At your home you can do both, plant trees and include birdhouses like fine yard art.

These have become the rage nationally, from the very simple single-story bungalows, to decorative gourds, to those that look like churches, schools and even antebellum homes. I have seen some birdhouses that almost make me wish I could live there. I have also seen birdhouses

that cost more than some cars I have owned.

While bird feeders, houses and baths are fun for the family, you’ll want to incorporate native plants in the landscape with berries or fruit that birds consider a delicacy.

In my area of Deep South Texas plants like the fiddlewood with bright orange berries, the anacua with its yellow fruit, and the Barbados cherry with its deep cranberry colored fruit are bird favorites.

In your area the favorites may be the steel blue berries of the wax myrtle, the bright red fruit of the dogwood or one of a dozen hollies. It is pretty neat to have good looking trees and shrubs that also serve as food and shelter for birds.

Most parts of the country have native sumac; many of these are champions when it comes to feeding birds. The stag horn sumac is one such prize, feeding a documented 94 species of birds.

As fall approaches, we can rest assured it is one of the best times for planting trees and shrubs. We can select those that are native and produce an abundance of fruit or berries for the urban wildlife.

Add birdhouses, feeders and baths, and you have created your own backyard wildlife habitat for you and the birds.

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All that glistens in this garden is glass namental grasses, cascading white roses and spring-blooming bulbs, in particular. Moneywort covers the ground nearest the glass garden.

In its first year, Semin says, the garden has required little maintenance.

She puts pieces of errant glass back where they belong and pulls an occasional weed. Rains soak through the glass, and strong winds have, so far, blown leaves and debris off it.

Murphy says his friend may have to “fluff” the glass garden with a straw broom on occasion, but

By JENNIFER FORKER

For The Associated Press

It would be an unusual backyard anywhere — especially, perhaps, among the cornfields and tall grasses of Nebraska.

When Michele Semin wanted to replace an aging swimming pool behind her rural-suburban home, she gave her high school friend Chris Murphy, a designer for nearly 30 years, permission to go wild. Be inventive.

And so he did.

Bands of brightly colored glass now flow like an undulating stream from Semin’s forest-green house toward the wooded back expanse of her three-acre yard. The colored bands cover about 3,000 square feet and are broken up by islands of white river rocks — some meticulously laid — on which lounge furniture, potted flowers and even a bright red metal sculpture perch.

It’s Semin’s idea of heaven.

The Lincoln, Neb., radiologist works long days, often in a dark, windowless room. When she returns home, she’s greeted by her three dogs and, out back, a riot of color.

“I come outside and the vibrant colors and the dogs are around me,” she muses. “It’s like meditation. It’s peaceful.”

“It’s gorgeous when the glass is slightly damp,” Semin adds. “It shimmers like sugar on a cookie.”

Murphy, of Christopher Murphy Designs in Tulsa, Okla., says Semin likes vibrant, abstract and symbolic artwork, and he wanted to incorporate those elements into her garden. The swirls of colored glass, he says, evoke the work of Emilio Pucci,

“it’s very soothing to go back and smooth it, rake it, like a Japanese rock garden,” he says.

Homeowners wary of a project this size might incorporate tumbled, colored glass in their landscaping on a smaller scale — anywhere one would install rocks or mulch, says Murphy.

The garden is lighted at night, too.

“It’s so dark in the country,” says Murphy.

“To have this light makes this (garden) come alive at night. (The glass) sparkles like stars.”

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This photo shows Michele Semin’s yard at her home in Lincoln, Neb. Her friend, designer Chris Murphy, created the outdoor design using colored glass. the 20th century Italian designer whose fashionable prints swirled with bold, geometrical patterns.

But why colored glass?

Murphy says the garden plan came to him in a dream. “I have always dreamed in 3-D,” he says.

The garden’s colorful curves symbolize ocean waves, but also waves of energy and even the “waves of grain” familiar to this Midwestern environment.

“We took a pool out that could have waves in it, in theory, and replaced it with a hard wave,” Murphy says.

Semin, 45, says her dogs can run across the glass garden, and she can walk on it barefoot. The recycled glass has been tumbled, so there are no rough edges.

“It doesn’t cut; it’s all smooth; it’s just a little prickly,” says Semin. “It’s

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not any different from walking on pebbles.”

Of course, this garden is not for everyone. For starters, although Semin didn’t want to share how much her garden cost, everyone involved says it was a costly undertaking.

Twenty-eight-thousand pounds of tumbled glass — in 50-pound bags — doesn’t come cheap, nor does almost 10,000 pounds of white river rocks, or the labor costs associated with installing them.

“At one point, I had so many bags of rocks and glass stacked up around my house,” Semin says.

“My neighbors must have thought I was crazy; they probably still do.”

Plants were brought in to soften the look, and a porch that overlooks the garden was rebuilt. A large fountain and the red sculpture break up the lines, and add interest and vertical forms.

The project took six months and was finished last October. LuAnn Finke of Finke Gardens and Nursery in Lincoln, Neb.,

says the ground needed to be filled in and leveled, then heavy-duty landscaping fabric was installed — not only to deter weeds but to keep the glass and rocks from sinking into the soil.

Metal landscaping edging subtly separates the glass colors and helps make the design “pop.”

“In some ways, the edging underscores (the garden) like a child’s drawing edged in black,” says Finke.

A landscape designer, Finke is more accustomed to working with plants, and her team installed plenty of perennials: or-

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T H U R S D A Y, O C T O B E R 2 0 , 2 0 1 1

This house has Southwestern feel in a Inland Northwest town PEGGY J. HAYDEN

OF TARGET PUBLICATIONS

P

Tribune/Barry Kough

The great room in Tracy Skaer’s Pullman home has 17-foot high ceilings and a wall of arches separating it from the entry way, true to its Hacienda style. which camouflages it. The center piece to the kitchen is an island that holds a flat five-burner top with an industrial looking copper chimney-type hood.

There is also a breakfast area with a view of Moscow Mountain.

The dinning room sits to the side of the other archway wall and includes a simple rectangle shape that fits the style of the house.

The laundry room includes a sink and a large wash tub for her Doberman Pinscher, Mariah. A door from the three-car garage can be found in

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the small hallway as well as the door to a powder room for guests. This powder room has a high ceiling and a little more space than the average powder room has to stave off a claustrophobic feeling.

Heading back through the entry way, which also includes a utility closet the other side of the house has three bedrooms and two full bathrooms.

The master suite, like the great room, has an adobe-looking gas fireplace.

A door to a covered patio can be found next to the room’s fireplace and the walk-in closet on the other side of the room has plenty of space for clothes and storage with Tribune/Barry Kough built in shelves, dresser ABOVE: The kitchen has a small footprint but is complete with a pass-through and hanging rods.

In the master bathroom to the great room. BELOW: Mirah, the doberman pinscher, poses in front of the there are two stand alone master bath’s large basin tub with copper skirt. sinks, as well as a large shower with two shower heads and massage jets.

The shower includes a glass wall that blocks the water instead of a door or curtain with an opening toward the back to prevent a water mess.

A stand-free claw-foot soaking tub is the center piece to this room with a copper skirt and a tile back splash.

Skaer uses one of the guest rooms for an office.

The guest bath is a standard size bathroom with a tub and single sink. The stickout accent of this bathroom is the iron arrow-shaped towel and toilet roll hangers. gray brick that has a The back yard has a west-pointing arrow retaining wall that also made with the lighter follows the style of the bricks through the midhome with two-toned dle of it.

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ULLMAN — When approaching Tracy Skaer’s Pullman home one can see the southwestern influence.

But once inside the Santa Fe Hacienda there is a distinct feeling of being transported to a simpler time in a South-ofthe-border place.

Visitors are welcomed to the stucco house with an authentic feeling gated courtyard, complete with a water fountain.

Upon entering the home there is a wall with several archways separating the great room from the rest of the house, indicative of the Hacienda style. The entryway is warm and inviting with the reddish-colored tile and natural wood finish.

The great room has ceilings that are around 18-feet high and the separating wall with arches is well short of going all the way the ceiling, which is also common in this style of home.

Skaer put a lot of herself into the home — making sure that it was exactly how she wanted it to be to the very last detail.

The three bedroom, 2½ bath house is full of earthy colors and tones, and has natural daylight lamps throughout.

From its pass-through window between the kitchen and the great room to the tile floors covering much of the house, its traditional Hacienda-style is easy to pick up on.

The colors through the house are tones of reds and browns in keeping with the style.

The kitchen was built in such a way that it doesn’t actually feel to small and has a functional design to it. Skaer’s refrigerator matches the cupboards,

Stop in and see what is new!

To have your home featured in the 2012 edition of Home and Garden, call

Hollie Posey at (208) 848-8201 or email her at hposey@lmtribune.com

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LEWISTON TRIBUNE

Kitchen staples can be green cleaners for bathroom Cleaning the bathroom can be daunting, even if you’re armed with traditional cleaners laden with bleach and strong but perhaps environmentally unfriendly ingredients. But what if you want to go green and still get the toilet bowl, sink and tile to sparkle?

Start by stocking up on white vinegar and baking soda.

These two staples of the kitchen can help keep your bathroom clean in a way that’s safe for the environment.

A little bit of chemistry helps explain why. “Vinegar, because of its acidity, can be good for (cleaning) hard water and soap scum,� said Rebecca Sutton, a senior scientist with the Environmental Working Group, a public interest group devoted to protecting health and the environment.

Baking soda, on the other hand, is alkaline, said Annie B. Bond, author of books on green living, in-

cluding “Home Enlightenment� (Rodale, 2008).

Mix the baking soda it with some water and make a paste, and it can be used as a scrub.

And don’t forget the soap — a mild castile soap made from olive or vegetable oils.

Just as the move toward green in general is growing, so is the interest in green cleaning products, said Urvashi Rangan, director of the consumer safety group for Consumer Reports. The number of products on the market has grown. “Within what we have looked at, anecdotally speaking, we have seen some green cleaners start to perform better and better,� she said.

What makes a cleaner green? “In my book, green has to be both good for health and the environment,�

Bond said.

Many conventional cleaners can damage both, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.

The EPA advises consumers to be alert for “signal

words� on labels. Among them: danger-poison, corrosive, severely irritating, highly flammable, highly combustible or strong sensitizer.

It recommends products that are biodegradable and solvent-free, have a bio base, such as pine or citrus, and are low in volatile organic compounds.

However, labels aren’t always a great source of information about what’s in a cleaner; companies aren’t required to list all the ingredients, although some do.

Sutton cautioned consumers to be alert for “greenwashing,� in which a company promotes the one green aspect of the product but doesn’t give the full picture of other ingredients. “A lot of folks, because of the quandary, are moving toward homemade cleaners — vinegar, baking soda, a lot of recipes you can find out on line,� Sutton said.

The effectiveness of these cleaners largely depends on the size or depth of the job.

Rangan said some home-

made bathroom-cleaning products are “better suited for people who are not leaving the hard cleaning jobs until the last moment.�

Also, she said, vinegar is “not going to kill some of the bacteria you want to kill if, say, you had someone sick in the house.� Alcohol or hydrogen peroxide might better serve that purpose, and “soap gets you a long way,� Rangan said. “Stronger isn’t necessarily better, and sterilization and disinfection isn’t always the goal,� she said. “Know when you’ve got an issue going on.�

Some solutions for typical bathroom trouble spots: THE BATHTUB Vinegar will help get rid of the soap scum. If you need to scour, try a paste of baking soda and water.

THE SINK You can brighten the sink and “get the white back� by pouring in vinegar and leaving it there for a while, Bond said. Also, try the soft scrub made from baking soda and water. “It’s not a matter of elbow grease. It’s a matter of letting it set for a period of time,� she said.

THE DRAIN “To de-grease and sweeten sink and tub drains,

pour ½ cup of baking soda down drain followed by 1 cup vinegar; let bubble for 15 minutes; rinse with hot water,â€? Consumer Reports’ Greener Choices website says. “You might have to repeat the procedure more than once or leave the baking soda and vinegar to ‘cook’ overnight.â€?

THE TOILET “The toilet bowl is difficult, even under the best of circumstances,� Bond said. “Go to a health food store and get a really good bathroom toilet product.�

For those who want to try a homemade product, Consumer Reports suggests pouring a cup of borax into the toilet and letting it set overnight. “In the morning, scrub and flush,â€? it said. “For an extra-strength cleaner, add Âź cup vinegar to the borax.â€?

THE FLOOR Clean with diluted vinegar and then do a water rinse afterward, Sutton said.

For those who don’t want to make their own cleaning products or buy a green one, there are other ways to get greener. “If you’ve bought your old conventional cleaners, try using a little less of them,� Rangan said. That could mean di-

luting a window cleaner or targeting your cleaning as much as possible. If there’s a spot of black mold in the bathroom, for example, go after that without bleaching the whole wall.

And, she said, “you don’t need an antibacterial product.�

Sutton said consumers should also look for products that are fragrancefree, and avoid air fresheners. “It’s not killing or destroying odor, it’s covering up odor that floods your nose,� she said.

There’s still a lot of educating left to do about green cleaning, Sutton said. “It takes a little knowhow, and when you get the knowhow, you’re set for life,� Bond said.

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T H URS D A Y, O C TOBER 2 0 , 2 0 1 1

Mulching puts added stress on mower

By John Shultz

Of the McClatchy Newspapers

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — That first taste of fall means the beginning of a big run of good-byes: so long to summer vacation, good-bye grilling season and farewell to footballfree weekends.

But before you give a hasty send-off to the mowing season, be aware that there’s a pretty decent checklist of prescribed fall lawn-mower maintenance tasks you might want to tackle.

Sure, most people may equate lawn-mower maintenance with early spring, but experts say fall is a fine time to do upkeep on the old reliable walkbehind.

A bit of work now will save you quite a bit of time and money when it comes time to roll the mower back out of the garage next year.

“Maintenance makes equipment easier to start,” said Roy Berendsohn, senior home editor at Popular Mechanics. “That may or may not result in direct cost savings, but it certainly reduces the wear and tear on you. Few things are as frustrating as trying to start a cranky

MCT

Mike Patterson rides his lawn mower around his ½- acre home in North Wales, creating stripes in his grass, just like they do at ballparks and stadiums around the country. piece of outdoor power equipment. Nobody needs that frustration on a busy weekend.”

When it comes to maintaining machinery, clean is important.

Before you even put the mower away for the season, one particular aspect of fall presents its own challenges for mowers: leaves.

“The best thing to do during fall use is to double-check your air filters,” said Ryan Hays,

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manager at Rick’s Lawnmower in Blue Springs, Mo. “The air filters get dirtier faster when you mulch leaves. If they get stopped up, they have to suck air from somewhere, and then they’ll suck unfiltered air, and you can damage the motor. “Also, some manufacturers tell you to change the oil in the fall because the dirtier and dustier conditions from leaves can impact the oil faster.”

Another key throughthe-season task: Keep a sharp blade, particularly with the added strain of leaf mulching.

“You can use better than 20 percent more fuel with a dull blade,” said Peter Sawchuk, program leader for home improvement with Consumer Reports.

“I always recommend people buy a second blade for the mower. It’s usually under $10.”

Keeping the mower deck clean is also an important task — certainly before you stow away the mower for the year.

“Having clippings and debris build up on the underside cuts the air flow and dramatically impacts the effectiveness of the

Fall Mower Maintenance John Deere provides these tips to ensure you’re getting the best cut quality and longer life from your equipmen: .

Tighten all nuts and bolts.

Check all belts, filters, safety shields and guards.

Replace any damaged or missing parts, including spark plugs.

Check tire tread and pressure.

Add a fuel stabilizer to the gas tank.

After adding stabilizer, run the engine for five minutes.

Change the oil (or in the spring).

Replace the filter.

Sharpen the blade, but be careful not to sharpen it to a razor’s edge — it will crack, peel back and hack grass to shreds. Leave a thickness of about 1/64 of an inch to keep the blade strong Balance the blade to prevent vibration. Put the center hole of the blade on a nail hammered into a garage stud. If one side goes down, file it until it becomes level.

Do not store in an enclosed place where fuel fumes can accumulate or be exposed to an open flame, spark or pilot light.

By Kathy Van Mullekom

Of the Daily Press (Newport News, Va.)

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the storage season, or you have to buy a new one every other year,” Sawchuk said.

David Fittje, department manager of seasonal at the Lowe’s in Kansas City, Mo., said that riding owners may want to make sure they check their belts on the rider. If it’s a little worn, over the winter it can crack or break.

“Spending the 20 minutes prepping a mower for winter can save you a lot of hassle come spring.”

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mower,” Sawchuk said.

At the end of the season, Sawchuk recommends turning the mower on its side with the carburetor facing up and cleaning the undercarriage with a hose. “If you leave clippings under there at the end of the season, it can start to rust and corrode.”

Changing the oil is more of a judgment call.

Most experts recommend changing the oil frequently during the mowing season — as often as every 25 hours of mowing time.

As for prior to storage, though, mower maestros are split.

“That’s a tough call,” said Popular Mechanics’ Berendsohn. “Some people recommend an oil change at the end of the season because it prevents dirty oil and sludge from sitting around in the engine’s crankcase over the winter.

“I think it’s better to change the oil in the spring before beginning the next mowing season.

That ensures that the oil is as fresh and clean as possible at the beginning of the season.”

So far, so good. It’s all pretty much the same

advice passed down from dad, granddad, and, quite possibly, great-granddad.

One topic your predecessors may not have worried about — but that you absolutely need to keep in mind — is alternative fuel. And failure to do so may lead to a significant headache and a significant repair bill.

“Ethanol is creating some problems in small engines,” Sawchuk said.

Explains Rick Muscoplat, contributing editor at the Family Handyman magazine: “Oxygenated gas only has a 30-day shelf life. After that, the ethanol starts to separate.”

That ethanol falls to the bottom of the tank, he said. And ethanol will absorb any moisture present in the air into the gas tank.

That water can work its way into the carburetor, leading to corrosion.

“If you leave that gas in all winter, your carburetor can be toast by next spring,” Muscoplat said.

And a carburetor repair job isn’t cheap — anywhere from $70 and more for a walk-behind to $200 and up for a riding mower.

One fix, thankfully, is cheap: a bottle of gas stabilizer, $7.

Fuel stabilizer can accomplish several tasks, Berendsohn said: it increases the lifespan of stored gasoline, it helps it burn more cleanly and efficiently, and it can prevent the separation that leads to corrosion.

Own a riding mower?

A lot of the advice is the same, but the job ahead of you is a bit bigger.

Clean the deck, naturally, watch the oil, filters and gas. Maintain the air pressure in the tires.

Wheel bearings may need lubrication.

“You’ll also have to charge that battery over

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In early November, Sunstory introduces North America to its new blue rose, called Applause, with nearly 100 percent blue-pigmented petals, according to a company press release.

It’s called a blue rose — but it actually looks a little lavender.

The name Applause was chosen as a token of congratulations to anyone who fulfills a dream or encouragement to anyone working toward a goal.

In Japanese, Applause rhymes with the word rose, according to Sunstory, which is based in Japan.

Discovered about 5,000 years ago, roses have long been associated with romantic notions. Folklore always presented the blue

MCT

Applause, the new blue rose from Sunstory, applauds life’s great moments. rose as the impossible because roses lack the plant pigment “delphinidin,” which gives blue hues to flowers such as violas and delphiniums.

In 1990, Sunstory started efforts to introduce a blue pigment from a pansy into rose breeding.

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Applause will be available at florists nationwide; learn more at sunstory.com.

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YOUR PLACE

Plaster ceilings are peeling after half a century

By ALAN J. HEAVENS OF THE PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER

Q: My parents have lived in their house for 48 years. The house is about 54 years old. They have always used good-quality paint.

About three years ago the ceiling began to peel.

When a representative from the paint company came to inspect the situation he said it was the plaster on the ceiling and not the paint.

They have delayed painting because the ceilings continue to peel.

What might be the cause and what do you suggest they do? Seems like too long a time for this to happen.

A: Moisture is a likely cause, high humidity in the house, inadequate ventilation after insulat-

ing, a leaky pipe in the shower, clogged dryer vent — just about anything — might cause the plaster to be damp and make it difficult for the paint to adhere to the surface.

Much of what I see on the Internet about peeling paint on plaster ceilings has to do with much older houses that have several coats of paint including the be-very-careful-with lead-based stuff.

I’m almost sure it is a moisture issue, because that’s what I have found over the years with my own older houses, much older than your parents’ place. Until you solve it, you won’t be able to repaint successfully, and then you’ll need to prep very carefully and thoroughly before you do.

I asked Deborah Zimmer and the Paint

Quality Institute about what makes paint fail.

The clues, she said, can be found in the way your paint is failing.

“The evidence is right there, you just need to know how to interpret it,” she said.

If your exterior paint is peeling, the culprit is probably moisture.

Peeling occurs when wet wood swells underneath the paint, causing the paint film to loosen, crack, and ultimately peel.

Water can reach the wood through un-caulked joints or a leaky roof. Another possibility: water being forced underneath the roofing shingles because of clogged rain gutters.

Bubbles or blisters in your paint can eventually lead to peeling, so they can’t be ignored. This

problem can usually be traced to either heat or moisture.

If your house was originally painted on a very hot day in direct sunshine, for example, blistering can result, especially if a dark-color paint was applied.

Sometimes, moisture is to blame. Excess moisture from within the home can build up behind the paint and cause blisters (this is less likely with latex paint, which is vapor permeable); rain or heavy dew can also produce blisters if the surface preparation wasn’t done properly or if low-quality latex paint was used.

Checking is when horizontal and vertical cracks create a checkerboard pattern in your paint. It is evidence that the paint has lost its elasticity.

Checking typically occurs on surfaces with several layers of oil-based paint. With age, oil-based paint gets brittle. When temperatures rise or fall dramatically, siding can expand or contract, but the inflexible paint simply cracks and checks.

Chalking occurs when a fine powder forms on the painted surface. Although light chalking is a desirable way for paint to wear over time, excessive chalking can cause the color of the paint to fade very quickly — evidence that the protective paint film is rapidly eroding.

Cases of extreme chalking can usually be traced to the use of a lower-quality, highly pigmented paint, or use of an interior paint on an outdoor surface.

Often, discoloration is due to mildew, a fungus

resembling dirt that thrives in warm, moist conditions. Thick shrubbery near the home can make the problem worse by shading the siding and restricting the flow of air.

A second type of discoloration is “bleedthrough,” which can occur with staining woods like cedar and redwood.

Failure to apply a primer before painting can allow tannins within the wood to seep through the paint and mar its appearance.

What to do if your home experiences one of these problems? If you can determine the cause, Zimmer advises you correct any condition that may have led to the paint failure. Then, when you repaint, do proper surface preparation, and use only top-quality coatings.

Fall is the time to plant spring flowering bulbs

By MARY BETH BRECKENRIDGE

OF THE AKRON BEACON JOURNAL

Culbertson Contracting

(509) 432-6525

Dube said.

Some people like to scatter early bloomers such as crocuses on a lawn and just plant them where they drop, knowing they’ll bloom well before the grass needs cutting.

The rule of thumb is the planting hole should be about three times the length of the bulb, but it’s best to follow the instructions on the packaging, Dube said. You can dig individual holes for each bulb, or dig a wider hole or trench that can hold a number of bulbs.

The bulb should be planted pointy side up, but that’s not crucial. The emerging shoot will find its way up and out of the soil, even if you plant the bulb upside down, Dube said.

Mulch is a good idea, but Ferguson recommended waiting until the ground gets cold before adding it. Otherwise, “you’re just creating a warm bed for little voles and mice,” which might snack on your bulbs, she said.

McCulloh thinks bulbs look best planted in drifts or masses rather than in lines. Plant at least 25, if you have the room, she said.

Ferguson likes to plant in a diamond shape, with the point toward the viewing area. That gives an illusion of abundance, she said.

But stay away from patterns that are too strictly

geometric, McCulloh cautioned. “Guaranteed one won’t come up, and it’ll ruin the whole design,” she said.

Consider planting with perennials that share similar growing requirements and will leaf out as the bulbs’ foliage dies back, McCulloh and Dube suggested. The perennials will hide the fading leaves, which need to be left in place until they’ve yellowed. That allows the plants to use the sun’s energy to recharge the bulbs with nutrients for the next year.

Some bulbs, such as daffodils and crocuses, can be counted on to reappear and spread year after year. Others, including most kinds of tulips, are better treated as annuals, since they get smaller with each reappearance.

Which bulbs should you plant?

Whatever flowers and colors you like, the experts say.

McCulloh, for instance, is partial to glory-of-theshow, a charming flower the blooms early and comes in pink, white and a vibrant blue she loves.

Dube plan to combine pink and orange this year, but she also likes the striking combination of white and black — well, really a very dark purple.

It just depends on what says renewal to you.

Think joy. Think freshness.

Think spring.

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AKRON, Ohio — When fall is in the air, it’s time to put spring in the ground.

Autumn is the time for planting the bulbs that will burst into bloom come spring. Sure, it’s delayed gratification, but the cheery appearance of crocuses and daffodils at the end of a bleak winter will be worth the wait.

And here’s the best part: Planting spring bulbs doesn’t take a lot of effort. You dig a hole, you drop in the bulb, and you cover it with soil.

That’s the message Dutch bulb growers are trying to get out with their new campaign, Dig.Drop.

Done.

“They’re so easy to plant. They come with everything they need for the first growing season,” said Amy Dube, a flower bulb expert with the Dig. Drop.Done Foundation, an educational effort being backed by members of Holland’s Royal Trade Association for Nursery Stock and Flower Bulbs.

“You really can’t go wrong.”

Flower bulbs contain all the nutrients the plant will need to grow and bloom the first year, so there’s no need to fertilize newly planted bulbs, Dube said. And because rain is usually plentiful in fall, you probably won’t even need to water, other than giving the bulbs a good drink when you first plant them.

Bulb experts usually recommend planting bulbs when nighttime temperatures drop into the low 50s or 40s for two weeks. There’s no real need to monitor the weather, though. When it’s sweater weather, it’s time to plant, said Sally Ferguson, director of the Netherlands Flower Bulb Information Center.

In Ohio, October and November are ideal bulbplanting months, said Ann McCulloh, curator of plant collections for Cleveland Botanical Garden. Ideally you want to plant once the soil cools but before the first hard frost, although you can even plant in December as long as you can still dig, she said.

Even if you’re not ready to plant, McCulloh recommended buying bulbs as early as you can. If you wait too long, your favorites might be gone, she said. Look for bulbs that are firm, and keep them in a cool, dark place until you put them in the ground.

Don’t fret if the papery skin is broken or missing, Ferguson said. It won’t affect the bulb’s survival.

Choose a planting spot where the soil drains well, since bulbs might rot in conditions that are too wet.

Spring-flowering bulbs like sun, but you can plant under trees or shrubs that will still be bare of leaves when the flowers bloom,

versity’s horticulture de Hyacinth ‘White partment: Pearl’ with Rheum palma Allium karataviense tum ’Atrosanguineum.’

‘Ivory Queen’ with Aster  Hyacinth ‘Jan Bos’ Keeping critters from macrophyllus. with Penstemon ‘Husker digging up your bulbs or  Anemone blanda Red.’ munching on your spring ‘White Splendor’ with  Ipheion uniflorum flowers can be a chal- Rheum palmatum’ Atro- ‘White Star’ with Potenlenge. Here are some sanguineum.’ tilla argentea. strategies for discouraging squirrels, deer and other marauders:  Plant flowers the animals don’t like. A few Rebuild, Remodel or Removal suggestions are daffodils, fritillaries, alliums, scilla, Mark Culbertson, chionodoxa, leucojum and galanthus.

General  Wear gloves when you plant. Squirrels have Contracting come to associate the scent of humans with food.

Licensed, Insured  Clean up planting & Bonded in ID & WA debris, such as the bulbs’ culbertsoncontracting@hotmail.com papery skin. The scent 321990JT-11 of that debris can attract squirrels.  Lay an old screen, some chicken wire or some other kind of mesh over the places where you’ve planted to make it hard for animals to dig there. Remove it once the ground has settled or frozen. You can even lay a sheet of chicken wire right on top of the bulbs in the ground, before you cover them with soil. The shoots will grow through the wire.  Deer love tulips. If Premium Carpet, Area Rugs, you must grow them, plant Vinyl, Tile, Hardwood, them close to the house, where deer are less likely and Laminate Flooring to feed. However, know that some deer won’t be easily deterred.  Get a big dog. Its barking will scare the deer off.

But don’t let it roam free, because it might attack a lame deer or fawn.

How To Protect Spring Bulbs From Animals

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Pesticide danger: Scores got sick, 1 died trying to kill bedbugs

By MIKE STOBBE

Of the Associated Press

ATLANTA — Worried about bedbugs? Maybe you should be more concerned about the insecticides used to get rid of them.

A government study counted one death and 80 illnesses linked to bedbug insecticides over three years. Many were do-ityourselfers who misused the chemicals or used the wrong product. And most of the cases were in New York City.

The study released recently by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is the first to look

Firebush is absolutely stunning for all gardens

at the issue.

The CDC was able to only get data from seven states, including New York, where bedbugs have become a highly publicized problem and where health officials have also been extra vigilant about unusual chemical poisonings.

Investigators said they didn’t know what to expect, but were relieved to see a relatively small number of cases.

“At this point, it’s not a major public health problem,” said Dr. Geoff Calvert, a CDC investigator who co-authored the study.

Bedbugs are wingless,

reddish-brown insects that bite people and animals to draw blood for their meals.

Though their bites can cause itching, they have not been known to spread disease.

“There’s nothing inherently dangerous about bedbugs,” said Dr. Susi Vassallo, an emergency medicine doctor who works at New York City’s Bellevue Hospital Center and occasionally deals with patients talking about bedbugs.

Vassallo, who is also a toxicologist, said most of the insecticides used against bedbugs are not a health risk but should still

be applied by a trained exterminator.

The CDC looked at reports from California, Florida, Michigan, North Carolina, New York, Texas and Washington, the only states that tracked such illnesses. The study counted 111 cases in the years 2003 through 2010.

Most occurred in the last few years, when bedbug reports rose across the country.

More than half were in New York City.

Most were people with headaches or dizziness, breathing problems or nausea and vomiting.

The one death in 2010 was a 65-year-old woman

from Rocky Mount, N.C., who had a history of heart trouble and other ailments. She and her husband used nine cans of insecticide fogger one day, then the same amount two days later, without opening doors and windows to air out their home afterward.

She also covered her body and hair with another bedbug product, and covered her hair with a plastic cap.

CDC officials said it’s not clear that the insecticides were a definite cause of illness in each of the cases, and it’s possible some were coincidental.

About 90 percent of the

 CDC report: http://www. cdc.gov/mmwr

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Watching hummingbirds on a firebush this weekend reminded me of what an incredible plant we all have for our garden.

I was speaking at the San Antonio Botanical Garden as part of their Amazing Butterflies Exhibit debut.

A walk around the gardens was an absolute thrill.

The firebush was one of the first Texas Superstars close to 20 years ago. Now decades later it is finally gaining the recognition it deserves. The firebush, is also known as hummingbird bush and scarlet bush, and botanically speaking is Hamelia patens.

Technically, it is a zone 9 to 10 plant, but I have seen it return many years in zone 8. But don’t let those zones throw you. It is a plant to be enjoyed throughout the country.

Since it blooms from June through November or the first freeze, it is most worthy as an annual purchase and is a virtual hummingbird magnet. It also receives a fair share of butterflies.

The firebush is an evergreen shrub or small tree in many areas of tropical and subtropical America.

It can be seen growing prolifically near magnificent stone pyramids in Veracruz and the Yucatan.

In the San Antonio area it grows well over 4 feet; it will most likely reach 24 to 36 inches in height in your garden.

After the past two summers, many gardeners are looking for those plants that are as tough-as-nails when it comes to heat and droughty conditions. I am happy to say the firebush fits the bill. It is very heat and drought tolerant once established, and will grow in almost any soil that is well-drained.

The clean, attractive foliage of the firebush serves as the perfect complement to its bright scarlet, tubular flowers with deeper red throats.

The flowers are produced continuously and never required deadheading.

Hummingbirds and butterflies love the flowers, and birds eat any fruit that is formed. If this isn’t enough to warrant buying the firebush, consider also that the foliage turns red in the fall.

Next spring, or now if you live in a warmer region, consider planting at least three for a nice show. Space plants 2 to 3 feet apart in fertile, welldrained soil in the full, scorching sun. Apply a good layer of mulch after planting. Feed every four to six weeks while growing with a slow-released, balanced fertilizer with minor nutrients. Occasionally prune lightly during the long growing season to produce a bushier plant. In the winter, an added layer of mulch just may help you have a spring return.

The stunning display at the San Antonio Botanical Garden and them combined with the Indigo Spires blue salvia. This combination is just about as hardy and easy to grow as anyone could want.

cases were linked to pyrethroids or pyrethrins, common insecticides sometimes used against bedbugs. But in some cases, an incorrect and more dangerous product was used. That happened in Ohio last year, when an uncertified exterminator used malathion — which should never be used indoors — to rid an apartment of bedbugs. A couple and their 6-year-old child got sick.

The report was released through a CDC publication, Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.