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Home Decorating Ideas

Sun, 24 Jul 2011 00:39:27 +0100

Home is your sanctuary, your place to relax in, a place for you to chill. Though, most of us are out of our homes in the day time, and come back in the evening after a day’s work, home is the place where we look forward to relax and rejuvenate. Everybody wants their home to look homely and beautiful too. Some people like to keep their home in a neater and less cluttered space, like the Zen Asian inspired look, while some enjoy throwing different color paints and objects in their house. Everybody wants their place to look nice and comfortable, so here are various home decorating ideas which you can use to make your place look beautiful. Here are some interesting ideas for home decoration.

Watch for my next update..till then Enjoy your home, enjoy your garden..Love your life!!

Visit my webpage and send in your questions and comments. I would love to hear from you!

http://lizbeltranhomeandgardendesigns.yolasite.com

Liz Beltran Home and Garden Designs

Plan the perfect garden path, courtesy of Ideal Home

Thu, 14 Jul 2011 15:20:55 +0100

How to create the ideal garden path

Straight or winding? Straight garden paths give a formal, functional look, while winding paths create a more relaxed feel.

Gravel and bark chippings are perfect for an informal look or for practical paths leading to the shed or between beds.

Brick is a mid-priced option and can be laid in patterns - try reclaimed bricks for
a worn look.

Timber and stone are pricey, but suit urban gardens where a little goes a long way.

Mowing a winding path through longer grass is an informal but intriguing way of exploring the garden.

Good maintenance is vital. Lay suppressing membrane under gravel and point bricks and paving to banish weeds. Clear slippery moss and lichen from damp paths with a jet washer.

Use aromatic plants such as lavender, catmint or clipped rosemary hedging to line paths - they'll release scent as you brush past them.

Need Easy To Grow Ground Cover?

Tue, 12 Jul 2011 05:13:33 +0100

Need Easy To Grow Ground Cover?

Posted on July 12, 2011 by lizbeltranhomeandgardendesigns

Top Ground Cover Sellers

Candytuft – Both the annual and perennial varieties of candytuft are very good ground covers plants. Annual candtuft, if planted from seed, it begins flowering withing just a few short months with colors ranging from white to pink to purple. Perennial candytuft is a low, semiwoody, densely growing, upright-stemmed, fast growing ground cover that reaches 10″ tall.

Creeping Thyme - Both our regular creeping thyme and the magic carpet creeping thyme are two of our best selling ground cover seeds. Magic carpet is sold in packets so you don’t get near as much seed as buying in bulk. This seed is just too expensive as it is imported from Europe. For large areas that need planted by seed, the wild creeping thyme is more suitable for that type of an application.

Crown Vetch - This is not a low growing ground cover plant, but we have it under this link because it is used so much for an erosion control type of ground cover. Crown vetch forms a good root system and is very hardy. It is ideal on slopes that are too steep to mow where a perennial ground cover is needed.

Dichondra - Dichondra is attractive due to its beautiful dark, green foliage. It is an evergreen plant can look beautiful all year in warmer climates. It will die out with hard frosts so it does not work will in colder zones. Dichondra has broad, almost circular leaves (looks similar to clover) and when mown low establishes a thick dense carpet look. Some people actually have dichondra lawns instead of grass lawns. Used in mass plantings for a low growing ground cover plant.

Envirolawn – This can be a lawn replacement or a ground cover where mowing is not feasible. Envirolawn is a mixture of hard fescue, clover, and flowers. None of these typically grow over 1 foot tall and it can be mown to a desired height and maintained. The grass portion will grow well in shade, but the flowers need at least 4 hours of direct sunlight to flourish.

Ice Plant - Ice Plant ground cover plants produce brilliant fushia blooms in just four months from seed! This hardy, drought-tolerant plant forms a ground-hugging mat that blooms all summer long! A mainstay of the water-saving or dry-climate garden, this hardy Ice plant is a flowering ground cover that blooms for months with little to no care!

Irish Moss - The most popular ground cover seed we sell in packets. Very tiny seed so sowing properly is essential to success, but when properly planted is a wonder plant that is often sowed in between stepping stones or rocks. Use Shake ‘n Seed for easy sowing. Irish Moss typically only grows 2″ to 4″ tall. It is one of the lowest growing ground covers that we sell.

Periwinkle – AKA vinca. For hot southern or desert climates or a hard to maintain spot near a concrete or reflecting wall, vinca is your plant! Blooms best when other plants are hurting from the heat. Very few insects or disease problems. This ground cover plant can be grown as a perennial in frost-free areas. Readily reseeds itself. Very drought tolerant.

Sedum – We offer three varieties of sedum, but only two of them (acre and dragon’s blood) are typically used as ground covers. Sedum does not require much water at all even though it is shallow rooted. It like, Irish Moss, is one of the lowest growing ground covers we offer; however, sedum is more drought tolerant then Irish Moss.

Verbena – We offer several varieties of verbena sold in seed form. Moss verbena is sold by the pound and can be used for large areas where a flowering ground cover is needed. Our other verbenas are only sold in packet sizes so smaller scale operations are better suited for it.

White Dutch Clover - This is the most versatile ground cover seed we offer. It can be used for erosion control, as a ground cover, as a lawn substitute, as a cover crop, and has many other used. Typically, it will stay less the 12″ tall and can be mowed and trained to stay at a lower height. Clover does not require much water and can tolerate light shade.

Wildflowers – Sunburst is our lowest growing wildflower mix that can be used as a colorful flowering ground cover plant seed. It will bloom in six to eight weeks after planting in the spring in a vast array of colors. Even though it is an annual, most of the flowers will reseed themselves and come back the following spring.

Watch for my next update..till then Enjoy your home, enjoy your garden..Love your life!!

Visit my webpage and send in your questions and comments. I would love to hear from you!

http://lizbeltranhomeandgardendesigns.yolasite.com

Liz Beltran Home and Garden Designs

Staycations..I saw this and had to share it!

Mon, 27 Jun 2011 19:54:01 +0100

June 27, 2011

Posted on June 27, 2011 by lizbeltranhomeandgardendesigns

Tue, 17 May 2011 | Published in Outdoor Living

I live in a home representative of the most popular trends in this nation. For example, one of my sons has moved home to save money after he graduated from college as he pursues the job of his dreams. My husband and I opted to trade in our Lexus RX SUV for an energy efficient Prius. As a family we enjoy spending time together, we have family dinners most nights each week. We share the job of cooking: I prepare most of the meals indoors, and my husband and sons share in the cooking on the outdoor grill. We talk about what is currently going on in the world, we share the highlights of our days, and we discuss our hopes and dreams for the future.

For the past 15 years, we have opted to take family vacations that have imprinted memories in our hearts and minds that we will cherish for the rest of our lives. As the kids are getting older, they are planning their own adventures to explore the world we live in. We all always make time to share together, and some of the best times are the simplest: hanging out in our backyard enjoying the hot tub, the fire pit, the BBQ, and comfortable cozy furniture. But, most of all, we love sharing this experience with our best friends and closest family members.

In the current economic conditions, there are many people just like my family who are choosing to stay at home for their vacation – or staycation, “a vacation that is spent at one’s home enjoying all that the home and one’s environs have to offer,” as defined in the dictionary. This is an innovative way to think of vacations, especially for overscheduled families.

I enjoy planning weekend getaways and socialization in my backyard, especially with the skyrocketing prices of gas. California is one of the states with the distinct honor of the highest gas prices in the nation.

The money that we are saving on staycations affords us the opportunity to spend money where it will last for more than one week, like our backyard. We recently added new outdoor drapes and outdoor throw pillows, we are shopping for a new outdoor rug and outdoor dog bed, and we are planning a big Memorial Day bash with our closest friends and their families. We are also contemplating a new outdoor pavilion, and we would love a Italian-style brick pizza oven to create authentic pizzas like we ate when we vacationed in Italy.

The best part of staycationing in our own backyards is that we can create the outdoor room that perfectly fits our lifestyle, and we will receive many hours and days of enjoyment for years to come. If you love to cook, create a gourmet outdoor kitchen. If you love water, choose a water feature that will give you pleasure, such as a fountain, spa, pool or pond. For people who love sitting around a cozy fire, there are a multitude of options such as fire pits, fire places and fire features. If you want to stay warm, there are outdoor heaters and cozy throw blankets. If you like to entertain, you can add an outdoor billiard table, an outdoor television, and outdoor speakers. If you can dream it, I am pretty certain you can find just the right things for your outdoor oasis.

What does your dream staycation destination look like?

I hope you found this information helpful. Remember you have unlimited resources available on the internet, at the library garden section and at your local nursery.

Watch for my next update..till then Enjoy your home, enjoy your garden..Love your life!!

Visit my webpage and send in your questions and comments. I would love to hear from you!

http://lizbeltranhomeandgardendesigns.yolasite.com

Liz Beltran Home and Garden Designs

Staycations..I saw this and had to share it!

Mon, 27 Jun 2011 19:35:14 +0100

Posted on June 27, 2011 by lizbeltranhomeandgardendesigns

Tue, 17 May 2011 | Published in Outdoor Living

What does your dream staycation destination look like?

I hope you found this information helpful. Remember you have unlimited resources available on the internet, at the library garden section and at your local nursery.

Watch for my next update..till then Enjoy your home, enjoy your garden..Love your life!!

Visit my webpage and send in your questions and comments. I would love to hear from you!

http://lizbeltranhomeandgardendesigns.yolasite.com

Liz Beltran Home and Garden Designs

Mulch, gravel, soil, sand…whats the difference?

Sat, 18 Jun 2011 16:13:37 +0100

Mulch, gravel, soil and sand may seem to be related but actually they all perform a different function. Lets look at each individually and learn about when and where to use each for best results.

Mulch is best used for decorative purposes. It also suppresses weed growth, seed germination, provides nutrients and to help conserve soil moisture. Mulch comes in different colors and from different sources. Because of where in the gardening zone you are located you may want to visit your local home improvement store and speak with an associate there for what is best for your particular zone. There are organic mulches, cedar, rubber, pine, red, black .. the list goes on. Use the same mulch all over the yard to keep your yard looking uniform. If you live in a rainy area try to avoid Eucalyptus mulch. It is very light and will float away during a heavy rain.

Gravel comes in different sized and colors but it is mostly used for drive ways, walk ways and also for moisture and weed control around trees and shrubs. Unlike mulch it will not add any nutrients to the soil.

Soil also comes with different components. Moisture control, organic, potting soil, peat moss, orchid moss, cedar composting, manure, nursery mix and on and on. Again due to the variance of the garden zones you may want to speak with a local grower for whats best for your project. Things to keep in mind are that moisture control is for dry zones where water is not readily available or for gardeners who don’t want to water the garden often. Potting soil is a general and all purpose soil for potted plants. If you mix it in with the soil in your garden it will enhance growth in your garden beds. Manure is used primarily for growing fruits and vegetables. You do not want to use chemicals in the soil around food producing plants and trees because you will also be consuming those chemicals when you eat items from your garden. Nursery mix is best for mixing with your current soil and for flowering plants. If you would like nursery mix I recommend going to your local nursery and purchasing their mix, which is specially mixed for your region, and is probably cheaper than at your local home improvement store.

Sand is used to even out lawns and for better drainage of water in garden beds. If you are planning a garden you may want to consider putting down sand first and then your prepared soil on top. This allows the plant to absorb the nutrients and water in the soil but lets the excess water to drain away from the roots of your plants to prevent root rot. Too little water is a problem but too much water can be a problem too. When working with your lawn you may want to fill in holes and / or depressions. This makes the yard look smooth and even all the way around. Once you have filled your problem spots you will then want to add soil on top to encourage your grass to grow over these areas. If you are able to purchase sod (grass rolls or squares) you could also cut small pieces to place in bare areas to cover the bald spots. The grass will not just hide the bare spot but will take root and complete your lawns perfect look faster.

I hope you found this information helpful. Remember you have unlimited resources available on the internet, at the library garden section and at your local nursery.

Watch for my next update..till then Enjoy your home, enjoy your garden..Love your life!!

Visit my webpage and send in your questions and comments. I would love to hear from you!

http://lizbeltranhomeandgardendesigns.yolasite.com

Liz Beltran Home and Garden Designs