A few years ago ... lawn chairs an umbrella and a nice BBQ were common place when outfitting your backyard. But the latest trend around the country are backyard living rooms. You can extend your living space by adopting this new design trend. Here are a couple of great articles I came across.
Wednesday, June 27, 2007
Saturday, June 23, 2007
Create a Low-Maintenance Lawn
Don't let you lawn take over your much needed weekend. The best way to keep your lawn easy to maintain is staying on top of it's health before problems take over and cause you more time and effort.
What you don't always realize is that usually when a problem arises, it is from something that happened a few weeks ago. To avoid these recurring problems like moss, crabgrass, red thread or dry patches start tending to your lawn early in the season. I like to start thinking about my lawn in mid February.
It seems to me that once you get into Feb and ESPN starts talking spring training is when I start heading to the shed to dust off my tools and start looking for problems from the long winter. In the Northwest we deal with a lot of rain (wow that's a news flash). So it's important to look for those areas that have been hit hardest by standing water or areas that just don't dry out due to shade from trees or your house. I like to take my hard rake and scrap out any dead grass to help your lawn breath again. Treat it with a little peat moss and over seed. Of course this is just one of many issues you might run into come spring time. The best prevention is a lawn that is vigorous and thick. It will ward off weeds, insects, and diseases better than any other measures.
To learn more about season long issues, check out this great article on Better homes and Garden.
What you don't always realize is that usually when a problem arises, it is from something that happened a few weeks ago. To avoid these recurring problems like moss, crabgrass, red thread or dry patches start tending to your lawn early in the season. I like to start thinking about my lawn in mid February.
It seems to me that once you get into Feb and ESPN starts talking spring training is when I start heading to the shed to dust off my tools and start looking for problems from the long winter. In the Northwest we deal with a lot of rain (wow that's a news flash). So it's important to look for those areas that have been hit hardest by standing water or areas that just don't dry out due to shade from trees or your house. I like to take my hard rake and scrap out any dead grass to help your lawn breath again. Treat it with a little peat moss and over seed. Of course this is just one of many issues you might run into come spring time. The best prevention is a lawn that is vigorous and thick. It will ward off weeds, insects, and diseases better than any other measures.
To learn more about season long issues, check out this great article on Better homes and Garden.
Thursday, June 21, 2007
Green For You And Me
I just wanted to give a shout out to Cedar Grove Compost. If you’re from the NW you are familiar with this great product. Cedar Grove uses state-of-the-art technology to recycle the most comprehensive list of solid organics in the region. What is great about Cedar Groove is that they have such a nice array of products that you can use them for just about anything. I like to mulch with the compost in the fall and then in the spring time they have a great new product call NW Gardeners blend. This is a 50/50 compost/dark bark blend. It looks great (I get lots of compliments) plus it fertilizes my plants all summer long. I don't need to add any other fertilizer other than starter food for my new plants and it just makes everything super colorful, super big and very easy to maintain. The only drawback is that you sometimes get a few weeds in your beds, but the benefit is much better than the pain.It's great to know you are creating a more beautiful landscape at the same time giving back to Mother Earth with this sustainable product with NO chemicals.
Friday, June 15, 2007
Landscaping Videos
I came across this site today that provides a great feed of landscaping videos (Technorati). The videos are produced by professionals and amateurs. There is lots of fun content to browse through. Check out the site here. Another great resource for videos is on About.com. I've used some of their videos on our site.
Sunday, June 10, 2007
Add Living Space with an Outdoor Room
I found this great article from www.newhomes.com, here is just a snippet:
One of the hottest current home trends has redefined the boundaries between our interiors and the Great Outdoors. Our need for more casual living space and a place to escape the stresses of everyday life has spawned the outdoor room. Gone are the days of the concrete pad with picnic table and charcoal grill. The outdoor living space has become an extension of our lifestyle. Clearly, some homeowners have taken the concept to its next level, building outdoor great rooms - complete with full-use outdoor kitchens, dining areas and living spaces for entertaining family and friends. Whether it be expensive and elaborate, or small and simple, an outdoor retreat can provide all the best that the indoors and outdoors have to offer - sun, fresh air, nature, comfort and convenience. ... read more »
One of the hottest current home trends has redefined the boundaries between our interiors and the Great Outdoors. Our need for more casual living space and a place to escape the stresses of everyday life has spawned the outdoor room. Gone are the days of the concrete pad with picnic table and charcoal grill. The outdoor living space has become an extension of our lifestyle. Clearly, some homeowners have taken the concept to its next level, building outdoor great rooms - complete with full-use outdoor kitchens, dining areas and living spaces for entertaining family and friends. Whether it be expensive and elaborate, or small and simple, an outdoor retreat can provide all the best that the indoors and outdoors have to offer - sun, fresh air, nature, comfort and convenience. ... read more »
Typical New Home Construction Backyard Landscaping
When you moved into your new home, did your backyard look like this? Most do. I would hope that the expectation for a back yard living space is set higher than this. But unfortunately most builders consider this finished landscaping. At Now Just Add Water you can pick from a variety for pre-designed landscape styles that have character & style and will give your visual pleasure for years to come. Check out our plans and decide for yourself. If you moved into your home with a yard like this, our plans can help turn it into something special.
Landscape Marketing that's good for the Builder and Buyer
When buying a new home did you have the opportunity to add a landscaped back yard to your purchase? If you answered yes, did you know what it was going to look like before you saw it the first time?
In most cases the home buyer never has an idea what they are paying for. Maybe you will get some sod, some bark and a couple of shrubs in most cases (not too exciting). Now just Add Water lets you the buyer pick out a yard design that fits your tastes and gives you more value for the dollar. This is great for both parties because expectations are set upfront and it only adds a couple of dollars to your monthly mortgage.
If you are a new home owner, we know that most HOA's require a installed backyard within your 1st year and with so much to buy for your new home, needing to pay more out of pocket cash for a back yard is not that fun. That's why we suggest installing it at the time of purchase and start enjoying your outdoor living space right away.
In most cases the home buyer never has an idea what they are paying for. Maybe you will get some sod, some bark and a couple of shrubs in most cases (not too exciting). Now just Add Water lets you the buyer pick out a yard design that fits your tastes and gives you more value for the dollar. This is great for both parties because expectations are set upfront and it only adds a couple of dollars to your monthly mortgage.
If you are a new home owner, we know that most HOA's require a installed backyard within your 1st year and with so much to buy for your new home, needing to pay more out of pocket cash for a back yard is not that fun. That's why we suggest installing it at the time of purchase and start enjoying your outdoor living space right away.
Welcome to our new Blog
Now just Add Water launches it's new blog. We are looking forward to pointing out areas of interest concerning landscaping, yard maintenance, real estate and new home construction maintenance.
A little about Now Just Add Water ...
Our company was founded on the principle that every homeowner deserves to have a fantastic out door living space. It add so much to your living experience and adds great value to your home. We help to accomplish this by providing a landscape plan that is affordable that you can build yourself to save costs or have a professional do it for you. And we go one step further, after your yard is installed you can come back to our web site (NowJustAddWater.com), sign into the MY YARD web page and get all the care and feeding information to keep your yard looking great!
A little about Now Just Add Water ...
Our company was founded on the principle that every homeowner deserves to have a fantastic out door living space. It add so much to your living experience and adds great value to your home. We help to accomplish this by providing a landscape plan that is affordable that you can build yourself to save costs or have a professional do it for you. And we go one step further, after your yard is installed you can come back to our web site (NowJustAddWater.com), sign into the MY YARD web page and get all the care and feeding information to keep your yard looking great!
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