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By Tribune-Review

Published: Saturday, May 25, 2013, 9:00 p.m.

Updated 9 hours ago

Q: Can you share ideas for a partially grassy rocky slope? It borders the driveway and doesn’t look so good. I used crown vetch (the highway jewel), and it filled up with weeds after several years. I would appreciate your ideas.

A: Your slope sounds a bit like a gardener’s nightmare. Not only is it a physical challenge to work there, but it’s difficult to find the right kinds of plants to grow successfully in such conditions. However, you do have a few options to work with.

First, if you don’t mind the grass and existing crown vetch already growing there, you can leave it be and just plant new things in and around it. The main benefit of allowing those plants to remain is the erosion control they provide. If it were my slope, this is the route I probably would choose. I would purchase plugs of several different tough-but-beautiful native plants and tuck them into the slope.

Some good plant choices include coreopsis, asters, goldenrod, coneflowers, yarrow, blackeyed Susans, bunch grasses, salvias and the like. Keep them watered for the first season or two until they establish, then after that, they’re on their own. To maintain the slope, just mow or weed whack it once each spring. Yes, it will look a little rowdy, but the slope will be held in place, and as you continue to add a few new plants every year, the flowers will fill in any and all bare patches.

If you want a clean slate, you’ll have to kill or otherwise remove the grass and crown vetch, which is not going to be easy. I would never suggest someone plant crown vetch on purpose (unless you are PennDOT — and even then, its merits are debatable), because it is so difficult to control. If you do manage to strip the area clean, I would suggest planting a mixture of dense-growing groundcovers over the entire area. Sweet woodruff, lamium, ivy, creeping phlox and other low-growing, tough perennials would suit, but you’ll have to keep the area carefully weeded and watered for several years until the ground cover completely fills in.

Another option would be to seed the entire bank with a wildflower mixture, but again, you’ll still need to keep it weeded and watered until it’s established.

I also might consider adding a few large boulders to the hillside, as they can fill up a good bit of space, add some interest and help hold the slope in place. They also can be used as supports for some colorful container plantings if you nestle them into the bank and keep them relatively level.

Horticulturist Jessica Walliser co-hosts “The Organic Gardeners� at 7 a.m. Sundays on KDKA Radio. She is the author of several gardening books, including “Grow Organic� and “Good Bug, Bad Bug.� Her website is www.jessicawalliser.com.

Send your gardening or landscaping questions to tribliving@tribweb.com or The Good Earth, 503 Martindale St., 3rd Floor, D.L. Clark Building, Pittsburgh, PA 15212.

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LINCOLN, Neb. — It started with a scent that Adam Anderson didn’t want on his hands any more — the “girly” smelling soap his girlfriend used.

“I thought, ‘Why aren’t there any soaps for guys?’” he told the Lincoln Journal Star. So he wrote down some of his odoriferous ideas that seemed more manly, like topsoil and, of course, bacon.

Then Anderson did some online research about soap-making and scents and other products on the market. He ordered enough supplies for a test run and in late October made 20 bars that smelled like a fresh-mowed lawn, but wouldn’t set off a flurry of sneezes.

When he showed it to his dad, Anderson had his first happy customer. Because for Terry Anderson, who owns Lawnscapes, a Lincoln landscaping business, this soap hit the mark.

Encouraged, Adam Anderson soon found himself up to his elbows in lather.

“It really wasn’t that hard to make soap,” he said.

A double boiler, basic chunks of generic soap, water, coloring and the ever-important smell was all he needed to get started.

Anderson’s first efforts came from his small kitchen, where he discovered the purchased “scents” needed a little tinkering to produce the desired results.

He named his product ManHands and created a logo of linked handprints. Then he began sniffing around for a dozen or more scents that fit the bill.

Sometimes being an entrepreneur was scary, he says. His containers — a plastic package that doubles as a mold — had to be ordered in volume, 800 to a box.

“When I bought my first case, I wasn’t sure I would ever sell that many bars of soap,” he said.

Turns out November is a great launch time for a product that just screams “stocking stuffer.” Anderson tested the market on weekends at local craft fairs and by putting his new product in a few local gift shops.

He found that women, who were buying the bars, loved the manly soaps, too.

But with making dozens of bars of soap, printing labels and storing containers, which took up a lot of space, his kitchen became overrun with the new product. After his parents offered a storage area in their basement, Anderson moved his new, thriving business over there.

“I hadn’t been sure what my intentions were before, but all of a sudden, I was in the middle of running my own company,” he said.

With a degree in business, Anderson, 27, put some of the economic practices he learned to work. He started with a small investment — he puts it at somewhere around $100 — and he quickly was able to put his profits back into the company.

Early on, he met with an attorney to make sure the ManHands name and logo was trademarked. John Miles, an attorney with Cline, Williams, Wright, Johnson and Oldfather, often works with startups and found Anderson’s product “pretty remarkable.” After sitting down and hearing his story, Miles saw Anderson had a “unique name, with a unique product and was gaining momentum.”

Miles even bought about a dozen of the soaps for holiday gifts. The Urinal Mint scent turned out to be a funny favorite of his friends.

“It’s one of the best-sellers,” Anderson said.

His own preference is Baseball Glove — a natural for a guy who played the sport at Lincoln Southeast High School and in college. Top Soil (farmers and gardeners love this one), Beer and Fresh Cut Grass also are popular scents. Others include Muscle Rub, Mint Blend Chewing Tobacco, Race Day and Bonfire.

By December, Anderson had his own Etsy website and garnered some national attention. CNN’s Anderson Cooper weighed in on the product, and so did morning shows in Atlanta and Australia. Even syndicated radio hosts Bob and Tom mentioned the product.

Not surprisingly his sales increased, and after gadgetsandgear.com, a New York City-based online store, picked up his product, Anderson was selling 300 to 400 bars a week.

Things have slowed down some after the holidays, but business is still pretty steady.

Anderson has perfected his soap-making skills and now makes 100 bars an hour. He prefers to make the orders as they come in, but he usually has all 20-plus scents available.

His own website — manhandssoap.com — is up and running, with a note saying “our soaps are individually handmade and are tested on dudes, not animals!” He also has a Facebook page, which oddly featured a complaint from a mom who said her man/child used the bacon soap and smelled like — yes, bacon.

Locally, Anderson is always on the lookout for stores to carry his product. Right now it can be found at From Nebraska, Plum Creek Gifts, Euphoria, Penguin Pit Stop and Simply Bungalow.

His prices vary, depending on whether it is purchased locally, online or wholesale. In Lincoln, most stores sell it for $4.95 a bar.

What’s next for the manly soap entrepreneur?

“I get a lot of suggestions for new scents,” he said.

But he’s not sure nacho cheese is a winner. For now, he hopes to grow the business, maybe branch out in scented product lines.

“I’m enjoying it,” he said.

With more than 6,000 bars sold, maybe it’s time to break out the soap he named “Cash.”

Lise Westfall likes a lot of everything.

You can see that when you walk through her house. Wall space is filled with treasures. Same goes for her backyard garden, a lush green space bordered by a white rail fence, dotted with hanging baskets of fern.

Perennials and annuals are packed in like fans at a Cardinals sell-out. Those not in the ground fill pots and tumble from birdbaths. Paths wind through the tree-shaded yard.

“The kids brought the maple seeds home from school,” said Lise, 59, standing beneath one. “We put them in pots and they grew into trees, one here, one on the other side and one in the neighbor’s yard. These trees have gotten very special. My oldest son (Michael) was 17 when he died a couple years ago of cancer. They are part of him.”

The maples have been joined by river birch, red bud, dogwood and a weeping willow.

Lise’s garden is one of eight you can visit from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, June 1, during this year’s Gardens In Bloom. The gardens are in O’Fallon this year. Tickets are $10 in advance; $12 the day of the tour, which is produced by St. Clair County Extension Education Foundation.

“All offer something unique,” said Kathy Sisler, of O’Fallon, who helped select the gardens. “They show that no matter what kind of space you have — small or large, sunny or shady — you can get ideas from these gardens that will help you do something with your own.”

Lise’s rectangular backyard is in Winding Creek Estates, a neighborhood of nicely-landscaped brick and sided homes. When she and her mother, Selma Westfall, moved in 17 years ago, their yard was flat with a sharp rise at the back — until Lise saw a magazine photo of a landscaped hillside.

“It had rocks (on a hill) with stairs going to nowhere.”

Now, so does hers. The rise created an opportunity to set outcroppings of boulders into the hill. Plants have grown around them.

“I like the rocks, the naturalness,” said Lise. “Over here, you can see a second set of rocks. I have a little chipmunk family that lives in here.”

Another magazine photo inspired the brick paver walkway with a fountain in the middle of a teardrop berm.

“I came out with a hose to lay it out,” said Lise. “I called on Scott’s (Landscaping). They listen to you. ‘Look, Israel, here’s the picture.'”

Now, her garden is a picture — and a delight to visitors who follow a steppingstone path around the side of the house to get there.

“It’s an oasis back there, peaceful and serene,” said Israel Hayes, landscape supervisor at Scott’s Landscaping. “You feel you are somewhere else. It’s definitely one of the nicest gardens that I have been in.”

“Oh my gosh, look how interesting and peaceful and different it is,” said Edie Sandoval, a gardening tour committee member. “It’s totally awesome. There’s so much shade and so many interesting plants and things, you’re like in a different world — and there’s no grass.”

That doesn’t keep Lise’s kids from playing soccer or badminton.

“The kids and I come out here a lot,” said Lise, the mother of two sons, Daniel, 17, and Alex, 7, both adopted from Guatemala. “The little one will get on rocks and jump down. It doesn’s hurt plants. If he steps on a perennial, it will pop right back.”

Lise, who is business manager in the department of developmental biology at Washington University School of Medicine, hosts family gatherings in the yard, including her brother’s wedding.

The garden and its elements also spark memories.

The white wishing well was a mother-son project.

“When the deck was made, these were residual pieces of wood,” she said. “My oldest son and I built that. He was probably about 5. It sits on top of a city drainage hole.”

Lise’s mom, who died two years ago, picked out the weeping willow that grows tall behind it.

“A trail goes up and there’s a seat,” said Lise. “I like sitting beneath the weeping willow. It’s just quiet.”

An alien figure and a crane came home with the family after vacations on Dauphin Island, Ala.

Lise reserves the west side of the house to nurse plants back to health and divide healthy ones.

“If something’s not happy, I put them over here. If you can’t do well over here, you have to go away.”

Lise grew up in O’Fallon along the Scott-Troy Road. Her father, Bill, raised sheep, worked at Scott Air Force Base, and took care of a vegetable garden. Her mom tended the flowers.

“We had an acre in garden — strawberries, raspberries, potatoes, peas and beans,” she said. “Everything. We were always out in the garden. Mom always had us outside. I was one of five. We all garden.”

When Lise and her siblings talk, conversations often turn to plants. She likes the creative aspect of gardening.

“You see something in your head and create it. I’m sure it’s no different than somebody who paints. I find it calming and quite spiritual.”

She fits it in evenings and weekends. Automatic sprinklers save watering time. The density of her plants keeps weeds at bay.

“To be digging in dirt, you kind of listen to where plants want to be,” she said. “It sounds funny, but I think they talk to us. ‘Put me here.’ Or they will talk to you in the store, ‘Buy me, I will do well by you.'”

Some of Lise’s favorites:

–Hostas. Some are in the ground; others are in pots, grouped together. She had just moved a a huge variegated-leaf variety called “Some and Substance” to a sunnier spot to bring out its lime color.

— Leopard’s bane, a yellow daisy-like perennial that blooms early and spreads. “The leaves on it are jagged and big,” Lise said. “Once the flowers are gone, it’s like a ground cover. I bought two plants.”

— Becky (Shasta) daisies. “They’re very good solid daisies with hard leaves and strong stems.”

— Impatiens are a favorite shade-loving annual. “They give color and keep geting bigger as summer goes on.”

They vie for attention with geraniums, caladium and petunias.

— Petunias. She’s partial to the Bubblegum petunia. “It’s old-fashioned. It just keeps blooming.” Other types she may cut back. “If I’m going on vacation, I sheer off the top. By the time I get back, they will be ready to bloom again.”

— Annabelle hydrangeas. “They’re native to this area. I have quite a few hydrangeas to give body to the (garden).”

If you go:

What: 2013 Gardens In Bloom — tour of eight O’Fallon gardens

When: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, June 1

Cost: $10 in advance; $12 day of the tour

Where to buy tickets: Ace Hardware, O’Fallon; Eckert’s Country Store, Belleville; Effinger’s Garden Center, Belleville; Hometown Ace Hardware, Belleville; Sandy’s Back Porch, Belleville; Starr Florist Greenhouses, Belleville; Terry’s Home Garden Center, Centreville; University of Illinois Extension Offices, Waterloo or Collilnsville

Produced by: St. Clair County Extension Education Foundation, benefiting University of Illinois Extension programs

Plant sale: United Methodist Church, 504 East U.S. 50, O’Fallon

Information: 939-3434 or 344-4230

Lise Westfall, of O’Fallon, has been playing in the garden since she was a kid. Her shady backyard paradise, full of flowers and plants, fountains and benches and many personal touches, is a delight to visit.

Here’s what she does to make it work.

Stuff it: “I like to stuff things. That keeps the weeds down. Also, I didn’t do all this at one time. I know someone would tell me I am crazy, but I do not find this that much work.”

Group things: “This spring, I had more pots scattered around than grouped together. It looked much better when they were grouped.” She changes flowers in the pots and moves them around, creating variety in the landscape.

Buy more than one of everything. “My one little plant looks cute. A mass looks great.”

May brings stunning vistas to the Boulder Valley: mountain peaks still capped with white, foothills green from spring snow and rain, wildflowers beginning to bloom and crops emerging from rural landscapes.

Among the most stunning views is that seen from the 4RockinG ranch west of Longmont, a property featured in this edition of Distinctive Homes of the Boulder Valley. Writer Sally McGrath interviewed the owners of the 144-acre property, which includes a 10,600-square-foot main house. The price? A cool $16.9 million, offered by James Simpson of Fuller-Sotheby’s International Realty.

“The property includes an Olympic-size riding arena and fully equipped horse barn with 12 stables,” McGrath notes. A ranch manager lives in a cottage on the site, which also includes a 7,000-square-foot prairie house and a guest cottage.

McGrath’s article is just one of many that highlight the current state of the Boulder Valley’s high-end home market.

Writer Jeff Thomas also provides a look at Boulder’s University Hill area, long a haven for University of Colorado students, with its proximity to campus, rental housing, downtown and shops on the Hill. These days, owners of single-family homes want to bring a more family-friendly atmosphere to the area, and many opportunities abound for buyers.

Thomas also provides readers with a glimpse at an increasing phenomenon in the Boulder Valley: “pocket listings.” These are homes sold before ever reaching the market. With a scarcity of listings, many sellers simply don’t want to mess with hordes of would-be buyers traipsing through their property. A pocket listing enables them to sell a home quietly, sometimes by word of mouth, to a friend or associate. (And they can do it on their own schedule.)

Looking at the market overall, Re/Max of Boulder’s Tom Kalinski provides a snapshot of residential numbers, including some healthy sales increases during the first quarter compared with the same period a year ago, along with some dramatic sales increases from February to March of this year. (No wonder real estate agents seem especially cheerful these days.)

Dave Scott of Colorado Landmark Realtors writes that, although April was not as strong as March, inventory numbers remain low, with Boulder driving the market overall. Low inventories mean higher prices ahead.

Other articles feature landscaping ideas and our recurring Residential Spotlight, highlighting a luxury home on the market.

Distinctive Homes of the Boulder Valley publishes from March through September. The section is inserted in the Boulder County Business Report and is distributed separately at dozens of real estate offices and coffee shops throughout Boulder and Broomfield counties.

If you have an idea for a future article — or questions or comments — please let me know at the contact information below.

Christopher Wood can be reached at 303-440-4950 or cwood@bcbr.com.

A pocket dog park, food trucks on a more regular basis and ping pong tables are among the ideas for Travis Park which New York-based urban consultants Project for Public Spaces presented to the public on Wednesday night.

Most of the ideas they presented focus on park activation, not redesign.

“Nothing here is permanent,” PPS designer Priti Patel said.

PPS’ ideas also include an outdoor reading room, a moveable stage for concerts, a putting green, croquet, flower beds, chess boards, art sculptures and a play area for the kids.

The consultants, and most of the 50 or so people who attended the meeting, all agreed that just basic improvements to landscaping, lighting and furniture would be drastically improve the area from the start.

Barbara Powell, owner of the Big Apple Bagels on Houston Street, was concerned with food trucks doing business at Travis Park on a more regular basis.

“My concern is the thought of it being permanent,” Powell said. “When the food trucks show up, you do loose your business to them.”

She suggested holding a regular farmers market, like the one during lunchtime at Main Plaza on Tuesdays, which would give restaurants an opportunity to tap into Travis Park.

The consultants said they will incorporate feedback from the meeting, and continue meeting with the park’s neighbors.

Funding and management are the big unknowns going forward.

Ultimately, the Center City Development Office will decide how much of PPS’ recommendations to present to the City Council, which could be in June.

From the 2012-2017 bond program, $75,000 was earmarked for lighting and electrical improvements at Travis Park.

— Benjamin Olivo

Have any downtown news, event info, hearsay, tips, celebrations, complaints, boastings, updates, breaking news, memories, old photos, etc.? Want to write a guest blog? E-mail me.

Follow the Downtown Blog on Twitter: twitter.com/mySA_downtown. And on Facebook

There is an opportunity to enjoy some spectacular private gardens across Huron-Perth this summer.

Beginning on June 1st, over 20 locations will be open to the public at various times.
Spokesperson Rhea Hamilton Seeger says visitors can learn more about compost and mulching options, shrubbery, plants, water features, new landscaping ideas are and much more.

She suggests the self-guided tours will attract visitors who will hopefully stay awhile and explore the entire area.

The Purple Rooster near Gorrie, Riverbend Gardens and Nursery near Wroxeter, Perennial Paradise in Gowanstown and the Pergola Garden in Stratford are among the locations.
The 2013 “Undiscovered Gardens of Huron-Perth” brochure with map is available at local tourism offices and library branches.

For more information you can also visit www.gardensofhuronperth.com.

   

Written by Shelley Miller-Cameron

Reporter

Email Shelley Miller-Cameron

Bingo fundraiser set May 30 at KC

A bingo night to raise money for the Butte High Travel Club will be held on Thursday, May 30, at 7 p.m. at the Knights of Columbus Hall, 224 W. Park St.

The cost is three cards for $5, with prizes awarded. Proceeds will help club members raise money for trips to New Zealand and Australia in June 2013, and London, Paris and Barcelona in June 2014.

For details, call Kristina Mengon at 533-2103 or email to mengonkk@butte.k12.mt.us

Tim Norbeck resigns at Central, takes Boulder job

Tim Norbeck, Butte Central High School principal for the last 10 years, has resigned.

Norbeck submitted his letter of resignation to the Butte Catholic School Board on April 24. He has accepted a new position as superintendent of Jefferson High School in Boulder.

Norbeck’s last day with the Butte Central Catholic Schools will be on June 30, according to Activities Director Chad Peterson.

— Renata Birkenbuel

 

Garden group plans meeting at Archives

The Butte Garden Study Group meets at 7 p.m. Wednesday, May 29, at the Butte Archives, 17 W. Quartz St., on the second floor.

Three programs are planned: “Principles of Home Landscaping” with Kellee Anderson; a video on “How Tall Trees Absorb Water”; and “Growing Delphinium and Larkspur.”

This is the last month to pay this year’s dues before a member is considered delinquent. Annual dues are $20 or $25 per household.

Election of the club president also will take place.

Questions: Call 723-6656.

Butte farmers’ market to open

The Butte Farmers’ Market will open for the 2013 season on Saturday, May 25, from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Park Street between Main and Dakota in Uptown Butte.

The market will run every Saturday for 20 weeks through the summer until Oct. 5. For details, call 497-6464.

Mainstreet’s market coordinator will also be on site throughout the Saturday market to answer questions.

The market features such items as bedding plants, farm fresh eggs, chickens, fruits and vegetables from Hutterite colonies near Choteau, Hmong vegetable gardens in Missoula and from several truck gardens and nurseries in the Butte area. Art and crafts by artisans and vendors from throughout Southwest Montana also will be available.

If you want ideas for how you can make changes to your yard the City of Plymouth is holding a “Water-Smart Landscaping: Using Rain as a Resource” workshop for free.

You will get personalized advice from a landscape designer — and discover practical, low-cost tips for attractive and healthy landscaping that uses rainwater efficiently. The ideas you get at the workshop will help you reduce the need for sprinkling, fertilizer and frequent maintenance while also saving you money and minimizing storm water runoff.

The workshop will show examples of how to create low-cost, multi-functional landscape features in your yard to meet your needs and benefit the environment. Through aerial photos, you will receive advice on your specific property.

To register, send an email to watersmart411@gmail.com. Please provide your name, address and contact information.

The workshop is on June 4, 6 – 8: 30 p.m. at the Plymouth Library, 15700 36th Ave. N.

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Seminar offers security ideas

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Tips from Durham Police and SCOP

– Bars on windows can be a fire hazard if you need a quick escape — consider a storm window as an extra layer of glass that intruders would need to break — it creates a lot more noise for them

– Having a front porch promotes a lot more socializing and activity in the front of the house which deters potential intruders in the neighbourhood and makes you an extra set of surveillance eyes, while enjoying yourself

– Eavesdropping intruders could know you’re out of the house if a phone rings unanswered from inside — turn your phones down when you’re out or vacationing

– Hanging planters over house windows can make intruders feel turned off by having something to handle and possibly make more noise

– Lock sheds, especially if they have tools or ladders which could be used to gain access to the house

– Put front door lights and sensor lights up high so no one can touch the bulbs

OSHAWA — While tending to yards and landscaping this spring, residents can use techniques and make adjustments around their property to make their homes less enticing to criminals.

A City advisory committee, Safe City Oshawa Partnership and Durham police, offered the public information about crime prevention through landscaping and exterior design.

On May 7, a small team of people from the City, Durham Regional Police, SCOP and the community held a seminar at the Northview Community Centre on Beatrice Street to discuss what techniques people can use around their homes to be proactive about crime and unwanted behaviour.

The methods include eye-pleasing ideas such as the arrangement of gardens, lighting, benches and posts along with various adjustments around the property.

Oshawa Councillor Bob Chapman said most of the concern from the public concerned break-ins.

“There’s lots of interesting approaches you can use to keep people away from windows and doors,” said chairman of SCOP, Paul Dobbs of Oshawa.

The committee helps educate the public and prevent crime within the community.

Having air conditioners on the upper level of the house where they can’t be removed to gain entry inside, planting gardens under windows and putting bottles on the inside of window sills or planters in front of windows can act as obstacles.

“Offenders really like the path of least resistance,” said Dr. Hannah Scott, who teaches victimology and crime prevention through environmental design at UOIT.

She began examining crime prevention through landscaping and exterior design when she taught at the University of Memphis and was at the May 7 meeting in Oshawa, to share her advice.

“One of the most common things homeowners do (for security) is get cedar shrubs,” she said.

However, she and Mr. Dobbs said a common mistake is to build a high wall of them so that criminals are hidden from the public if they do find the chance to slip onto their property.

Keeping sight lines clear with smaller hedges and trees trimmed of low branches, along with sensor lights for night doesn’t allow opportunities for trespassers to hide on someone’s property.

Mr. Dobbs warned that homeowners should be cautious that technology such as sensor lights and alarm systems don’t go off too often, making them lose their element of alarm and urgency for homeowners and possibly their neighbours.

Crime prevention through landscaping and exterior design is also used by municipalities for public buildings, including the Oshawa courthouse where there are clear sight lines, special benches to prevent skateboarding, stone posts to block cars from rolling up to the building and comfortable spots to gather in groups so there are always plenty of eyes watching the area.

Residents can have an assessment done on their home by police by contacting Constable Hawrychuk of the crime prevention and community services unit at 905-579-1520 ext. 1775 or through e-mail at phawrychuk@drps.ca.

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Victor Alva’s Sunrise Landscape, a full service landscaping and irrigation company, offers tips for arid yards and sustainable landscapes for the summer.

Santa Fe, NM (PRWEB) May 20, 2013

Victor Alva’s Sunrise Landscaping company is a locally owned business that works hard to create the best environment for each of his clients. With arid conditions in the Southwest regions, many homeowners think they are limited to how they can create an oasis of plants and water features. Alva takes on this challenge happily with each of his clients.

Alva says, “Our primary goal is to find a balance between beauty and conserving resources. We constantly seek new and creative ways to help you with our services like landscaping, sprinkler irrigation, clean yards, flat stone and masonry and patios”.

For lighter water use and sustainability, Victor offers some landscaping ideas for your home or business:

•     Select plants that are tolerant and naturally found in the local climates. Plants that already exist in the region are acclimated to the temperatures, moister levels, soil conditions and sun exposure.
•     Use Terracotta planters. Planters hold a defined amount of soil and help conserve water instead of having the entire yard soak up the water.
•     Cover garden beds with mulch or stones. Different types of cover will help keep the ground cooler and preserve the moister as well as provide the landscape a pleasing design effect.
•     Adjust sprinklers and irrigation to meet the needs of specific landscapes. Many people over water their yards and plants. Also, never water in the heat of the day as much of the water is absorbed into the hot atmosphere.

Sunrise Landscaping has many more tips and idea specific to each homeowner’s needs. See some of Victor’s landscape creations and get a no cost, no obligation estimate today. http://mycinsay.com/c/sunrise-landscaping/landscaping-services

Join Sunrise Landscaping Facebook page at: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Sunrise-Landscaping/603006686377076?fref=ts

Contact:

Victor Alva, Owner

505-204-3559

For the original version on PRWeb visit: http://www.prweb.com/releases/prweb2013/05-Sunrise_Landscaping/prweb10751084.htm