DIY Projects

Shabby Chic Garden Sheds

One of the most popular trends still going strong 20 years after the term was coined. A distressed and timeworn look is the epitome of shabby chic decorating. Contemporary but classic, it has become a popular and universal style. The latest trend is shabby chic sheds. Evolving from the humble garden shed, functioning solely as a storage space for the lawnmower and garden tools. The shabby chic shed offers a perfect place to enjoy a cup of tea and read a good book.

Paint Structure with Soft Pastel Shades

 

A signature way to create this look is by using a soft pastel color palette. Sky blue and pale pink are two of the most popular shades used when creating a vintage feel. To make-over the exterior of your shed, paint it in one of these shades and easily create a weather worn look by sanding the paint down to make it look distressed. If you don’t feel brave enough to paint the whole exterior, why not try painting pieces of furniture, such as a table or sideboard to display your vintage-style tea sets. For the inside, white washed wood creates a light and airy vibe to any shabby chic shed. It’s a classic color that suits the theme completely. You can also bring in white wicker furniture, soft linens and sheer drapes for the ultimate vintage white interiors.

 

Recycle and Upcycle

 

Salvaged furniture is at the very heart of the shabby chic look. It’s also an inexpensive way to create a comfy and inviting atmosphere on a small budget. Have a look at some unloved pieces in your home and have a go at upcycling. If you are new to upcycling, start with something simple like repainting some unloved chairs or recovering a seat cushion in a new floral fabric. Embrace the imperfections.

Mix and Match Accessories

Shabby chic is all about mix and matching vintage accessories and furniture. Have a look around local charity shops for pieces that compliment your existing furnishings. Some accessories that would look great in your shabby chic shed are a rusty lantern, crystal chandelier, or a vintage teapot.. Most things will go with this theme, use your intuition and go for pieces you love.

 

.There are no rules when it comes to shabby chic decorating. If you follow some of these tips, you can transform an ordinary shed into a whimsical retreat that you can enjoy year-round.

DIY Projects, Real Estate (Farm & Ranch Land)

Second look: Curb Appeal

Have you ever driven by a home that you had to take a second look? From the brick the house is made of, to the color of the front door, to the landscaping in front of the porch. It all just seemed to mesh so flawlessly right? Such is the power of curb appeal.

Curb appeal is that outward appearance that is often the first impression people have of your home. That is a big thing, it welcomes family and friends to your home. Spring is the best time to give your home a little update both inside and out so below we will look at three easy ways to give your home a little extra flair!

1.      Dress Up The Front Door

Your home’s main entry way is the focal point of its curb appeal. Make a statement by giving your front door a blast of color with a fresh coat of paint. The color you choose should really pop, but should also reflect the inside of your home as well. Don’t be afraid to add a little extra to your front door too. Adding a wreath is a great way to call out your front door even more!  A few containers with plants welcomes people forward. Plus it’s a good way to showcase your personality and creativity for all your neighbors!

 

2.      Utilize Outdoor Lighting

Much like photography, lighting can make all difference. Landscape lighting can make a big impact with your home’s curb appeal but can also provide safety and security. Light fixtures as accent lighting for your home or trees can really make them stand out during the night. They’re also perfect for illuminating walkways around your home. If you can’t install a wired set up, solar lighting is a great alternative!

3.      Flower Power

The easiest way to give your home some fresh curb appeal is to change the landscaping. Nothing catches the eye like well done landscaping with eye popping, colorful flowers. But you don’t have to have a professional landscaping job to have the same effect. Picking flowers that are bright and contrast your home’s color and placing them in the right place can get the same effect for much less!

Shade Trees and Shrubs

Planting Trees and Shrubs (How-to)

Planting a tree is a long-term investment. Besides adding beauty to your landscape, a tree helps the environment by taking up carbon dioxide, the greenhouse gas that is such a big driver in climate change. It can provide shade to relax in on a hot summer day, as well as reduce the energy costs of cooling your home, or act as a windbreak to help cut winter fuel bills. And it can provide food and habitat for the creatures big and small that share your landscape. You’ll reap the biggest dividends if you take the time to get your young tree off to the best start by planting and caring for it correctly. Consider a well-grown tree a gift not only to yourself but to the generations to come who will enjoy it spreading branches.

Start by Finding the Trunk Flare

Tree roots need water, but they also need oxygen. The root system of a tree that is planted too deep will slowly suffocate. Too deep planting can also encourage the formation of circling roots will girdle or choke and kill the tree as it grows. So it’s very important to plant your new tree at the correct depth. The best way to do this is to make sure you find the trunk flare on your tree before you put it in the ground.

What do we mean by trunk flare? Start by looking at a tree that has grown naturally in the landscape. You’ll see that the base of the trunk gradually widens or flares out as it enters the ground. If you pull back some of the soil at the base of the tree, you’ll see the tops of the main order roots spreading out at this point. You want to plant your own tree so that the base of the trunk flare (also known as the root collar) is right at the surface of the soil (or slightly above in heavy soil). The flare of the trunk on a sapling is not as noticeable as it is on a mature tree, but if you look closely, you’ll see it — that is, if it’s not buried.

And there’s the problem. With both trees grown in containers and those sold with balled and burlapped (B & B) root balls, the trunk flare frequently gets buried in the course of digging or repotting. When the root balls of B & B trees are dug up, quite a bit of soil often gets thrown up around the base of the trunk before the ball gets wrapped in burlap. And when container-grown trees are repotted, they may end up with their trunk flares below soil level.

So forget the old advice to simply measure the height of the root ball to figure out how deep to dig the planting hole. If the trunk flare isn’t visible, find it by carefully pulling away the soil around the base of the trunk until you see the trunk flare.

Then dig the planting hole only as deep as the distance from the trunk flare to the bottom of the root ball. Why only this deep? Why not loosen the soil at the bottom of the hole before you set the tree in? Because you want to be sure the tree doesn’t sink down after planting. You need to set the root ball on undisturbed soil so that the ground below the ball won’t settle after you set it in the ground, causing the tree to end up planted too deep.

But first, before you begin digging your planting hole, check for underground utilities by calling. Also check for overhead obstacles such as electrical and phone lines. Remember – your tree will grow!

If it is bare root, soak overnight.

Make a Broad Planting Hole

As for the width of the hole, make it broad, at least two to three times the width of the root ball; as much as five times the width in compacted soil. Slope the sides of the planting hole outwards at a shallow angle (think of making a saucer, not a pit) and rough them up with the edge of your spade. This is especially important in clay soils where digging can leave the sides of the hole slicked over and hard for plant roots to penetrate.

Set the Tree in the Hole

With container-grown trees, slide the root ball out of its pot or cut it away if necessary. Loosen and spread out the roots on the outside of the rootball before setting it in the planting hole. With a B & B root ball, trim away the burlap and remove any twine. If the ball is in a wire basket, cut and fold back the wire from at least the top half of the ball; ideally you’d like to remove all the wire. This may be easier to do once the ball is in the hole. Basically, you’re trying to remove as much non-plant material as possible without causing the root ball to fall apart. If you notice any roots that are kinked or encircling the root ball, trim these away.

Check that the trunk flare is positioned so that it will emerge even with or slightly above the soil level when the planting hole is filled. Laying a long-handled tool like a garden rake across the span of the hole will help you figure where the soil level will be when the hole is filled in.

Be sure not to hold the tree by its trunk as you move it into the planting hole. And be careful not to drop the ball into the hole, as this can break off roots within the ball. If the root ball is heavy (and soil does weigh a lot!), try using a tarp under the ball to drag it carefully into the hole, using a plank of wood as a slide if needed.

Once the tree is in the hole, walk around and look at it from all directions and adjust it so that the trunk is straight, if necessary. It’s almost impossible to reposition a tree after you’ve filled the hole with soil!

Backfill with Native Soil

Now it’s time to backfill the planting hole with soil. Your first impulse may be to add lots of fertilizer and organic matter to the soil you put back in the hole. But stop! Your tree will do best if you use only the native soil to refill the hole. Why not improve this backfill soil? Because doing so will encourage roots to stay within the pocket of hospitable improved soil rather than crossing the boundary into the native soil to become established, which will ultimately interfere with the long-term health of the tree. And if you are planting in heavy soil and you fill the planting hole with lighter, more porous amended soil, the roots can drown as the hole fills up with water during rainy weather, just like a bathtub, with the water held in by the heavier soil outside the hole. So stick with the policy of what came out of the planting hole is all that goes back in.

Start by filling the hole about halfway with native soil, breaking up any large clumps with your shovel while taking care not to damage any tree roots. Then add 5-10 gallons of water to the hole and let it drain through, settling the soil to remove any air pockets. Add the remaining backfill, using the leftover soil to create a low berm around the edge of the planting hole to contain water. Firm the soil in the hole with your hands, not your feet, or you can compact the soil and restrict the growth of the roots. Then add another 5-10 gallons of water.

Stake only if Necessary

Staking is something else that most gardeners think is a must. But in many cases this is a task you can skip. Only stake your newly planted tree if necessary. Most trees with trunks smaller than two inches in diameter don’t need staking unless their root ball is crumbling; they are planted on a slope, are sited in a very windy location, or have a badly bowed trunk. The natural movement of an unstaked tree helps it to develop a sturdier trunk and a more robust root system.

If you do stake your tree, erect two stakes on opposite sides of the trunk. Attach flexible ties such as 3-inch wide nylon webbing straps on the lower half of the trunk and secure the ties to the stakes with heavy gauge wire. Stake loosely enough to allow some trunk movement; this is important for normal root and trunk development. Be sure to remove the stakes and ties as soon as the tree is established, usually after the first season of growth. Also remove any tags or trunk guards on the top of the tree at planting time. If you leave these on long-term, they may eventually girdle the tree as it grows, harming or even killing the tree.

Mulch Mindfully

Finally, spread mulch such as wood chips or shredded bark 2-4 inches deep over the root zone of the newly planted tree to help conserve soil moisture and keep weeds down. But don’t make a mulch ″volcano.″ Piling mulch up against the trunk can lead to rot and disease. Instead, leave about 6 inches of bare soil between the trunk and the mulch.

Give Follow-Up Care

Keep your young tree well-watered during its first season in the ground, but don’t overwater. The frequency of watering needed will depend on soil type, temperature, and rainfall, so check the soil moisture in both the rootball and the backfill a couple times a week. A houseplant moisture meter is a handy tool for this task. When you do water, add enough water to soak the entire depth of the rootball; don’t just wet the top few inches of soil with a light sprinkling. Then let the top 3 inches of soil dry out before re-watering.

Plant Shrubs Properly Too!

These same basic techniques apply when you are planting shrubs as well. Multi-stemmed shrubs won’t have a distinct trunk flare like a tree trunk does. But you’ll want to place a shrub so that its crown (where the stems and roots come together) is right at the soil surface or slightly above it, with the rootball resting on undisturbed soil, and follow the same guidelines for width of the planting hole, backfilling, and mulching.