Door Prizes include:

• Tickets to California Musical Theatre: Frost/Nixon
• Gift Certificate to Cabo’s Mexican Restaurant
• Two  Tickets to Fleetwood Mac Concert & Dinner for Two
• Two  Tickets to Fight Night at the Red Lion
• Gift Certificate to Café Ettore
• Gift Certificate to Brew It Up

Plus, lots of great vendors. For more information, click here.

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Whether you live where it rains or where it pours, there’s a great, easy way you can conserve water for garden use.

Where I live (Calif.) that’s a very big deal, as we Californians head into a third consecutive drought year.

Rain “harvesting” isn’t a new concept, but let’s just say this oldie is a goodie.

It’s as simple as setting up a simple capture system to redirect rainwater off the roof to a barrel.

Collecting Water - photo by Prem Anand

Whether you use a wine barrel to collect rainfall from your rooftop or recycle waste water from household sinks, bathtubs, showers and washing machines, you’re doing your water bill and the planet good.

If all this sounds like too much work, there’s always a very easy way to save–turn off the sprinklers during the winter, sunless it’s really dry and windy, in which case run them every so often. Get to know your sprinkler system and learn how to turn it off.

According to local experts in my hometown, Sacramento residents devote 60 percent of residential water use to their outdoor irrigation, and of that, 40 to 60 percent is wasted, as most homeowners over water by 200 to 300 percent.”

You can buy rain barrels here. Or buy a whole rain water collection system here. Or, take a baby step and turn off your sprinklers in the winter time.

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If you are an avid gardener, or even not so avid, you probably have your own type of fertilizer that you prefer to use and probably something that it has in common with mine is that it is expensive.  It is almost alarming at how expensive a fertilizer can be. Sure, we all want big and beautiful blooms but does it have to be so expensive to create those blooms.  The answer, of course, is no, it doesn’t need to be that expensive.

Instead, you can make a number of fertilizers using everyday items that you find at home.  Not only is it more inexpensive, reusing, and recycling the materials around your home is a great way to be a “green” gardener.

Tip #1:  It’s all in the grounds

The first time I heard this being suggested, I was a little surprised.  After all, doesn’t coffee stunt growth, I mean, that is what happened to me.  Fortunately for my plants, coffee works as a great fertilizer for gardens and instead of throwing your leftover coffee away, why not save it for your garden.  With this fertilizer, you actually don’t use the grounds but you use the coffee that is brewed from the grounds.  Once you have a pot of coffee, add it with another 4 pots of water for a 1:4 ratio.  This will give you your fertilizer and you can use it on your plants every other week to see some pretty amazing results.

Tip #2: Apples aren’t just used to keep the doctor away

Okay, maybe it’s not apples exactly but using a homemade fertilizer that has 1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar and one gallon of water, can add a definite boost to your plants.  This fertilizer is great for house plants and it does an amazing job at boosting those green leaves.

Tip #3: Keep your fish tanks clean

This may seem like a strange tip but if you have a fish tank, your dirty fish tank water works as an excellent fertilizer since it is chalked full of nitrogen, which plants need in their soil.

Tip #4: A little Epsom for you and me

I love having baths and nothing is as nice as a bath with Epsom salts.  It can clean those pours and relax those muscles after you have spent a day out in the garden digging up that new flower bed.  What is even better, a mixture of 1 tablespoon of Epsom salt and 1 gallon of water can really help your tomato plants and other plants that require a higher level of magnesium to thrive.

Tip #5: Get cracking

The last tip that I am going to recommend as a homemade fertilizer is egg shells.  Whenever you make some eggs, save the shells until you have a fair amount. At that point, simply crumble them and then sprinkle them in the soil around your plants.  This provides your soil with much needed calcium carbonate.

And there are a few tips to get you on your way to not only saving a few nickles and dimes but also towards being an organic gardener.

Sirena Van Schaik

photo credit: © Fallsview | Dreamstime.com

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Create a conservatory look in winter by placing greenery in a lightweight urn or other garden accessory.

The beautiful new urns on your deck or patio were a sight to behold this summer. Overflowing with brightly colored flowers, they brought you pleasure all season. But now that the colder weather is setting in, do you need to unplant them and store them out of sight where no one can enjoy them?

“The answer is no,” says Peter C. Cilio of Campania International Inc., manufacturers of fine garden accessories. “Bring your containers, birdbaths, statuary and fountains indoors to use as accent pieces during the holidays and winter months.”

With more than 20 years in the garden business, the folks at Campania know it is possible to use garden accessories in hundreds of creative ways — with and without plants.

“Outdoor accessories can really make a statement when they’re brought indoors,” says Cilio. “Cast stone urns, especially with a weathered mossy patina, make wonderful and atmospheric indoor decorations.“

If you wish to plant outdoor urns or containers for indoor use, Cilio recommends inserting a plastic liner in the pot and slipping the plant in the liner, thus preventing leaks when watering. Sphagnum moss can be used to fill any gaps if the interior of the pot is still visible.

Cast stone accents, like this Campania Pisa birdbath, make wonderful and atmospheric indoor decorations.

For lower maintenance, dried flowers, interesting branches or topiary shapes made of moss, grapevine, shells or even shiny Christmas balls can be arranged in the urns or containers and for added interest can be changed seasonally.

White lights can be added for a festive nighttime look. Even unplanted, a cast stone urn, especially if raised on a pedestal or placed on a table can be a dramatic sculptural focal point.

Statuary, finials or small fountains and birdbaths can also be enjoyed indoors during the colder months. Create a conservatory look in winter by bringing a garden statue or small fountain indoors and nestling it among potted plants in a corner of a room. A fountain used indoors will provide much needed humidity during the winter and the sound will be a delightful reminder of summer.

Here are few more tips for using outdoor accessories indoors:

*Small birdbaths can also be used in many creative ways. Filled with seasonal fruit or colorful (peppers) or sculptural (artichokes) vegetables, they become unusual, edible, not to mention economical, centerpieces. Remember to use felt coasters on the bottom to protect your table. Fill a small birdbath with water to float flowers or candles for an exotic and enchanting table decoration.

Garden accent pieces can be versatile and elegant enough to bring indoors for four seasons of enjoyment.

* Keep an interesting large urn or planter by your door to catch umbrellas or gloves, mittens, hats or other winter belongings tossed by your kids as they race into the house.

*Fill a container or small birdbath with unusual gourds and small pumpkins. Weathered terra cotta, cast stone or rusted iron are natural complements to autumn decorating.

* An elegant planter box can be used beside your fireplace as a place to store kindling.

* Create your own indoor water garden by adding plants such as spider lilies, taro or water lettuce to a glazed or lightweight container.

* Place a small urn or birdbath in your bathroom to hold soap or towels.

“With a little creativity,” Cilio says, “your planters and garden accent pieces can be versatile and elegant enough to bring indoors for four seasons of enjoyment.”

To learn more about outdoor planters and ideas for bringing them indoors, visit your local garden center or go to www.campaniainternational.com to view their entire catalog online.

Courtesy of ARAcontent

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