Thursday, May 16, 2013
Everything you need to know about painting your house: stripping, powerwashing, fixing damaged wood and choosing paint colors. Sponsored by Home Depot.
It’s that time of year again and you’re outside, enjoying your yard. Then you start nosing around—maybe you’re inspecting your plants, or reviewing the condition of your lawn or setting up your sprinklers—and before you know it, reality hits. You need to paint the house. A daunting task. An expensive task. A necessary task—because it's not just about how your house looks, it's about your home's value. Neglect is not an option. Take heart, however. Information and resources have never been more easily available to help you through this project. Know Your Options Your options are to either hire a contractor or paint it yourself. Hiring a contractor is an expensive option, but if it's in your budget and you do the necessary research to …
Saturday, April 6, 2013
Perhaps grass isn't the best option for certain areas of your yard. A Wayland landscaper offers her thoughts in her most recent blog post.
Sunday, October 14, 2012
We've started an album of colorful flowers ... now we're asking for your to upload your own images.
Claypit Hill second grade teacher Deane Coady submitted a number of photos showcasing the vibrant colors of the garden's at her school. We've seen some lovely fall flowers around Wayland and we'd love to see your photos. Share the images you've captured of the beautiful flowers in your yard and gardens.
Wednesday, October 3, 2012
Leaf bags, rakes, wheelbarrows and more.
It's that time of the year — time to haul out the rakes, wheelbarrows and leaf bags. Time to tend to your lawn before the snow comes. Or time to knock out that yard or garden project you've been meaning to do. Below are some options on where to stock up on your fall cleanup supplies: 1. Russell's Garden Center Address: 97 Boston Post Road, Wayland Phone: 508-358-2283 The buzz: Russell's Garden Center provides an array of gardening options, in addition to fountains, bird baths, statues and lawn ornaments. Russell's also offers gift and season items. Hours: Open Daily 9:00am-5:30pm Check website for seasonal evening hours. Contact email: info@russellsgardencenter.com Founding Date: 1876 Payments accepted: American Express, Cash, Debit Card, …
Saturday, August 4, 2012
It's really hard to think about summer's end, but the promise of the fall harvest is helpful.
Football for my boys starts next week, and as I walk the flats my feet feel a little chilled. Change is in the air, and I'm gently being reminded that summer's end is inevitable. My gardens are pumping out tomatoes, cucumbers, squash, zucchini, chard, eggplant, peppers and green beans. Honestly, I wish it would never end. The reality? I live in New England and the growing season is short. Believe it or not, it's time to shift gears and start thinking about planting our fall and cool weather crops. Cabbage, broccoli and rutabaga need to get in the ground as soon as possible because they need 70 to 80 days to reach maturity. If you're lucky, you may be able to find some seedlings at a local gardening center. Last time I was in Russell's …
Saturday, July 21, 2012
Pesto, Caprese salad, mosquito repellent ... huh?
Anyone and everyone who is growing edibles is growing basil. It's just one of those must have plants. I grow a bunch of it every year and make homemade pesto, Caprese salad and a couple of pasta dishes. I love it! Basil in the garden is also known for being a great companion plant to tomatoes. It not only helps to deter the nasty tomato hornworm caterpillar, but is said "to improve growth and flavor," according to a report out of California Lutheran University (PDF). I recently read that certain herbs can be used as mosquito repellent and research has been done to prove the effects are comparable to that of Deet. The other night I convinced a friend to rub herbs all over to protect us from the annoying blood suckers of summer nights. I …
Saturday, June 2, 2012
Keeping things neat and tidy in the garden is a key to success.
My snow peas and strawberries are ready for picking. My lettuces are growing like crazy! My summer crops, including green beans, squash, tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers, to name a few, have all been planted. My gardens are all doing exactly what they want to be doing ... growing. Now that the garden is in full swing, it's time to focus on maintenance. Most of the maintenance or upkeep involves what I think of as "house cleaning." Keeping things neat and tidy in the garden is truly one of the keys to success and necessary for optimum growth. Cleaning up and disposing of any fallen leaves or petals, thinning out plants and deadheading any spent blooms is a good place to start. Weeding is a given. The last thing you want is for your plants …
Friday, June 1, 2012
A look at what's open on the housing market this weekend.
Searching for a new place to call home? Here is a sampling of open houses this weekend in and near Wayland. Flip through our photo gallery to take a peek at the open properties. Details about the property and open house are included in the photo caption. Are you selling your home or are you an agent? Add a photo of your house and leave the address, price, number of bedrooms and baths and open house day and time in the caption. About this column: House Hunt is a weekly column featuring real estate open houses in and near Wayland. It appears each Friday at noon and is compiled using MLS data.
Thursday, May 31, 2012
A sampling of homes purchased in and near Wayland this week.
Click on the photo to look at a gallery of properties that sold in and near Wayland between May 23 to 30. 14 Hidden Springs, Wayland List Price: $1,898,000 Sold Price: $1,800,000 Sold Date: May 30, 2012 Living Area: 4,806 sq. ft. Rooms: 12 Bedrooms: 5 Baths: 4 full, 2 half 38 Cedar Crest Road, Wayland List Price: $419,900 Sold Price: $390,000 Sold Date: May 30, 2012 Living Area: 4,806 sq. ft. Rooms: 9 Bedrooms: 3 Baths: 2 full 7 Pesce Drive, Wayland List Price: $1,063,000 Sold Price: $1,024,000 Sold Date: May 29, 2012 Living Area: 3,864 sq. ft. Rooms: 12 Bedrooms: 4 Baths: 3 full, 2 half 81 Newbridge Road, Sudbury List Price: $648,000 Sold Price: $640,000 Sold Date: May 30, 2012 Living Area: 1,900 sq. ft. Rooms: 8 Bedrooms: …
Saturday, May 19, 2012
Building an army of allies, or "beneficials," to deal with garden pests is Integrated Pest Management 101.
I try not to spray pesticides in my gardens because I’m building an army of allies, named "beneficials," to help deal with pests. I also cannot imagine a summer without the beautiful butterfly. Beneficial insects, like the famous ladybug and praying mantis or the less famous lacewing or braconid wasp, are the good guys that eat or paralyze and then lay their eggs in the bad guys like tomato hornworm or aphids. One way to attract beneficials and butterflies to the garden is by growing the foods they enjoy most. Recently I recommended a friend plant a dill plant in her raised vegetable garden bed. Dill is known to attract beneficial insects, such as lacewing, to the garden but it's also a favorite of the swallowtail butterfly. Both my …
Erin Fulton
10:32 pm on Sunday, July 22, 2012
Great article! Anything that works and replaces chemicals then it's worth a shot!!! more ›