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Herb Garden – Step 4 – Plant the herbs

This section is the fun section. And here’s what I did:

1 – Dug holes in between the paving stones where I was planting the herbs
2 – Filled these holes with a mixture of potting soil, river sand and top soil (ratio of 1:1:5)
3 – Made space in the “now filled in” holes for the herbs to be planted (as they are fully grown already)
4 – Put the herbs in the holes in the new mixture, keeping as much of the original soil that the herbs came in as possible
5 – Filled the gaps around the herbs with more top soil and patted it down to get rid of air pockets around the roots
6 – Watered the herbs thoroughly – You will need to do this almost daily, depending on sun exposure and temperature, until the herbs have settled in.

As you can see in the picture below, the herb garden is already taking shape nicely.
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My Wind Chimes

Wind_Chimes_Flower_3.jpgI just have to tell you about my new favourite purchase: my Wind Chimes! These chimes are not your standard wooden chimes, or even the little “tinny” wind chimes. They are made from metal, and emit the purest, most relaxing sound I have ever heard from a chime.
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Herb Garden – Step 3 – Laying the stepping stones

It probably seems strange that this step would come at this part of the process. The reason I am doing this now is because My “soil” is not really soil, more a sandy clay. So, instead of digging the whole section up and replacing this mixture with proper soil (obviously a preferred process), I’ve decided to only use soil where I am planting the herbs.

So, as you can see in the images below, I am creating “sections” where I will be putting each type of herb.
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Herb Garden – Step 2 – Remove the grass

Well, you will only need this step if you have grass in the area that you want to create your herb garden in. As you can see in my photos, I did. This section is probably the hardest/longest part of creating the herb garden, so if you don’t have to do this, lucky you. One thing I could recommend doing is searching for a Garden Service in your area. There are normally a lot of gardening services that would be willing to come out for a day to do a job in your garden when needed.

Before we begin, what you will need for this section are some basic garden tools, namely a spade and a garden fork. Also, if you can water the grass so that it is completely wet, this will make life a lot easier when cutting/lifting the grass out.
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Herb Garden in 24 hours

Want to know how to create a herb garden in 24 hours? Hopefully this series of articles will help you do this. Herbs are always a good thing to have in your garden. There are medicinal herbs, culinary herbs, and, of course, there are the spices. Sometimes it’s good to mix herbs and spice, especially if you enjoy that extra bit of flavour in your food…

Some reasons for growing a herb garden are:
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Web resources, Home and decorating ideas

News_and_Stories.jpgSt. Paul Pioneer Press has a list of web resources that they found helpful for people planning on trying home decorating. There’s a link to a Feng Shui site, and once again, the software “Plan3D” is mentioned. This seems to be a really popular product, and I really think you should go take a look at it…

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The New Mexico Channel has an article on “Picture Perfect Home Decorating Ideas”. Here’s an excerpt that I like:

“To make sure your new color scheme is a winner, use a color wheel, available from most hardware stores. Complimentary colors are found opposite each other, while dominant and accent colors appear side-by-side on the wheel. It’s a great tool that will help ensure your success.”

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The Long Island Press has a nice article that builds on an interview that Natalie Weinstein had with Thomas Von Essen, fire commissioner of the City of New York under Mayor Rudolph Giuliani. She is asking “What Does Home Mean To You?“. Here is the introduction, see if it doesn’t grab you:

“My work is dedicated to changing people’s lives through their homes. Home, to me, has always meant that special place—empowering, nurturing and providing a safe haven.”

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Bed and Breakfast

My wife and I went away for a weekend to the Drakensberg, a mountainous area in South Africa. We found a really nice “4 Star” Bed and Breakfast while looking on the internet for Drakensberg Accommodation that was off the beaten track, and yet was still close enough to the tourist attractions (the Midlands Meander) to make it ideal. I would fully recommend this Bed and Breakfast if you were to travel to South Africa or the Drakensberg (if you’re already IN South Africa). Post a comment and I will reply with a link to their web-site. After having spent the entire weekend driving around the Midlands Meander in the Drakensberg, I could probably give you a few pointers on where to stay and why certain Drakensberg Accommodation is better than others…

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BUT, and it’s just a little but, here are a few things I would recommend you take a look at improving if you own a Bed and Breakfast:

  • Quaint is nice, but make sure it’s not old-looking. An example is a bathroom that might be very clean, but hasn’t been changed or upgraded in 20 years… Put in new tiles, taps and basins. It will make a WORLD of difference
  • Ensure the paint does not look like it’s peeling. If you give the place a new paint job, give the WHOLE place a new paint job. Don’t forget the window-sills
  • Ensure the doors (and locks) fit properly. Get a locksmith to come in and fix things. DON’T let you guests struggle to lock the door to their room

These things might sound really obvious, and yes, the Bed and Breakfast in the Drakensberg could get away with these minor details because of their impeccable customer service (and value for money), but the little things count. A visitor won’t notice if it’s right, but will definitely notice if it’s wrong, so fix it…

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Couch-buying anxiety and the Zagats of home improvement

News_and_Stories.jpgI only have 2 links for you today. Not that there wasn’t other new information out there, but because I feel like writing about these 2.

First up is the “LA Times” with their article entitled “The Zagats of home improvement”. They’re talking about a site (and other like it) called Angies List (https://www.angieslist.com/). Here’s a bit of a description of the site:

Angie’s List, which debuted in Los Angeles last fall and in San Diego a year earlier, is part of a growing number of directories that bring the Zagat approach to the home improvement industry. These directories blend the contact information of a telephone book with frank consumer reviews. Businesses can not nominate themselves, pay to be included or advertise.

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The next story is from Delaware Online and they talk about how “Couch-buying anxiety can be conquered”. They say:

Buying a sofa is one of the most important furniture decisions a homeowner can make. Experts say this big-ticket purchase should not be taken lightly since there’s a good chance you’ll own a sofa longer than you’ll own a car.

It really is quite an interesting article. They mention the fact that, as people are getting larger (obesity wise), so too is the furniture getting larger:

The rise of obesity in the United States is another contributing factor in expanding furniture. Nilsen says sofas tend to be bigger “because people are.” She says seating sometimes can be anywhere from one-third to one-half larger than it has been in the past.

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Have a good night’s sleep

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At “A Bed Fantastic” there’s an interesting post on “8 Tips to make your Bed More Comfortable”. This is what they have to say:

1. Clear away all those throw pillows.
2. Remove the clutter from underneath your bed for good feng shui.
3. Get a goose feather pillow.
4. Invest in an orthopaedic mattress.
5. Buy a down duvet.
6. Get an overlay or a topper pad for your mattress.
7. Treat yourself to new sheets – cotton in the summer, flannel in the winter.
8. If you have allergies, cover your mattresses and pillows with allergy proof encasings.

Regarding #1, I hope you’re not sleeping with the throw pillows on the bed… Otherwise, keeping them on the bed during the day for decoration is not a bad idea.
They promise to go over each point in the coming weeks, so keep an eye out for that…