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Love flowers, but don’t have the space — or the desire — to plant a garden? You may want to try making your own flower box, which can be just about any size you wish.

This planter box is built with a top and a bottom exterior frame; then you affix cedar panels to the frame and add bottom panels. After that, just add plants for a touch of spring anywhere you want to put it!

Expert tip: Always draw a diagram before you build anything. Remember: If you can’t draw it, you can’t build it! You don’t have to be Leonardo Divinci, just that YOU can read it!! Your diagram will be useful in helping you determine the size of your project and the amount of lumber you’ll need. Simply take the finished diagram with you when you go shopping, and you’ll be sure to get everything your project requires.

Materials:

Four Lengths of 26 Inch 1×2 Cedar
Four Lengths of 13 Inch 1×2 Cedar
Twelve Side & End Panels 5 Inches x 12
Two Base Panels 1 Inch x 6 Inches x 24 Inches
Wood glue
Galvanized nails
Hammer
Stainless-steel or Ceramic Coated Screws
Drill driver and bits
Speed square

Note: All our sections were precut, so they just need assembly. If you can’t or don’t wish to cut your own lumber, home-supply stores will generally cut it for you for a small fee.

Expert tip: Before you begin hammering, use sandpaper to rough up the striking surface of your hammer. Then it’s less likely to slip while you’re working.

Building the Frames


Build the top and bottom frames out of the 1×2 cedar strips. You’ll be butting the ends together, so no mitering will be necessary.

1.Fasten two 26″ strips to two 13″ strips to form each rectangular frame. (You’ll need to ensure that the length remains 26″; to do this, butt the ends of the shorter strip against the longer strips. The thickness of the two longer strips will add an inch to each end of the shorter strips, increasing their length to 16″. Do this at each end of the longer strips to form a rectangular frame 26″ long and 16″ wide.)
2. Apply a bead of wood glue to the junctions of the strips; then nail together with a single nail in each junction in preparation for inserting screws to hold them more securely.
3. Predrill the ends prior to screwing them together; this helps keep the ends from splitting. Then insert a screw in each corner.

Attaching the Side Panels

1. Stand the two frames on their sides and apply a bead of wood glue to the inside face of the bottom side frames (the long sides).
2. Attach four side panels to each long side, smooth sides out, and nail from the inside to hold them in place. Make sure the frames are flush with the panel ends on at least one side, or the bottom panels won’t fit properly. If the panels are jagged on the other side, you can always smooth them with a trim saw later.

Tip: Because you’re nailing from the inside, you may have to drive the nails at a slight angle. The advantage of this is that it conceals the nailheads from the exterior face of the window box.
3. Repeat step 2 on the other side of the box.

Attaching the End Panels

1. Stand the half-completed box on its end and apply a bead of wood glue to the inside face of the bottom end frames.
2. Attach two panels to each end in the same manner that you used to attach the side panels, once again ensuring that the ends are flush on the bottom.
3. Repeat the process on the opposite end.

Attaching the Bottom Panels

1. Check and if necessary adjust your box for square.
2. Attach three bottom panels to form the base of the planter box, using wood glue and screws. The base will reinforce and brace the box.
3. Drill several holes in the panels so that water can escape, or simply leave a gap between the panels.

Finishing

Lightly sand any rough edges and corners to smooth out splinters. Now it’s time to feel, smell, kiss and hug your new planter box, because it looks so good - and you did it yourself!

Homework!

If you wish, you can stain, seal or prime and paint your planter to suit your home’s decor. Because you used cedar, however, it can stay unfinished: cedar is one of the best lumbers you can use for exterior applications.
This planter is a good size for potted plants, but you may wish to add a plastic liner and fill it with soil (add a layer of gravel first). If you do, don’t forget to cut holes in the liner to line up with the drainage holes in the bottom of the planter.

Enjoy planting!

Courtesy: Cedar Creek Woodshop
http://www.cedarcreekwoodshop.com

As a property owner, you are responsible for 100 percent of the clean up! Cleanups of labs are extremely resource-intensive and costly. The average cost of a cleanup is about $5,000. This is if you are lucky!

Clean Up (includes the insides and the outside of a building)

Air out the building

Removal of contaminated materials:

Carpets, carpet pads, Linoleum, drapes and blinds, air-filters, refrigerators, range, water heater, all tenant clothing and their furniture.

Removal needs to be to a site that accepts contaminated product.

All people that remove these items need to be specially trained and certified.

Surfaces: Extensive cleaning and replacement if the cooking occurred on those surfaces. After extensive wash down with bleach and other cleaners, seal walls and floors to seal in any contamination.

Ventilation systems: Furnaces and heaters will either need to be replaced or cleaned throughout all ductwork.

Plumbing: You might need to replace sinks, toilets and other accessible plumbing due to methamphetamine odors since meth residual was most likely deposited down the drains.

Repainting: Make sure the walls, ceilings and closets are cleaned, sealed and then painted.

Windows: Make sure they have been cleaned as well as the tracks. If the unit was especially heavily used, replace all of the windows. Doors in and outside need to be painted and door hardware needs to be washed down.

Exterior: Does the yard need to be cleaned up? Is there methamphetamine debris in the yard?

Most states required a certified industrial hygienist to approve of the clean up, and most states require a certificate of occupancy permit

Contact your state department of health for more information on this.

http://www.portlandtribune.com/archview.cgi?id=23990

http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v01/n214/a08.html

To your success,

John Michael

Copyright 2005 JMichael Investments

You have permission to publish this article electronically or in print, free of charge, as long as the bylines are included. A courtesy copy of your publication would be appreciated - send to John@jmichaelrei.com

About The Author

Copyright 2005 JMichael Investments

John Michael is an active Real Estate Investor and teacher/coach. You can visit his site at http://jmichaelrei.com

John Michael also offers free membership in his investing club and FREE coaching in real estate - Email at John@jmichaelrei.com

Feng shui indicates some specific guidelines regarding children’s spaces and bedrooms. The way we decorate them and the way we distribute the furniture should be done by following those principles in order to achieve harmony and help your children feel comfortable in that space.

One first important aspect to have into account about a child’s room is the colors within it. You should pay special attention to the colors you choose for this space, not only for the walls but for the decoration in general. According to feng shui, a child’s room should be in earth colors such as light oranges, terracotta or warm yellows. These colors would make them feel safe.

Colors that are cold, such as blue or gray shades should never predominate in a child’s room, since they could bring them insecurity feelings. Besides, the wall and furniture colors should be in balance as well. It is also important to remark that too bright colors are not recommended for a child’s bedroom.

If your child is very active, you should balance this through the colors you choose for his bedroom; they should be light and relaxing colors such as beiges or very light oranges. On the other hand, if your child is quiet, you should choose warm orange or yellow colors which would be in balance his personality.

As with all bedrooms, the bed position is very important. First of all, your child’s bed should not be right across the door. Besides, it should ideally have a wall at one side and be in such a position that allows him to easily see the door. If possible, the bed should be in a corner since that would make the child feel secure and sleep better.

Also, the position in which the child sleeps can influence the time he wakes up and how deep he sleeps. If your child has problems waking up, you should place his bed in a position which allows him to sleep with his head towards east or south. On the other hand, if he has light sleep, his head should be towards north or west.

By Jakob Jelling

http://www.fengshuicrazy.com

Jakob Jelling is the founder of http://www.fengshuicrazy.com. Please visit his website and learn all the feng shui tips you’ll ever need!

When choosing a new greenhouse for your garden there are several things to bear in mind if you are going to get the most from your choice. A wrong decision can prove costly in the long run so be sure you know exactly what you need before you buy. Here are some of the most important things to consider:

What Do You Need Your Greenhouse For?

If you are looking to grow flowers or vegetables all year round then a tightly sealed, insulated greenhouse with good light transmition, ventilation and heating will be most desirable. However, if your greenhouse will only be used for germinating seedlings or wintering less hardy plants through light winters then a simple plastic frame with a polythene covering will no doubt suffice.

Free Standing or Attached?

Depending on your requirements there can be major benefits of either of these types of structures. An attached greenhouse can be a simple lean-to style greenhouse attached to the side of your house or a more expensive sunroom style construct in fitting with the rest of your building. The main advantage of either is in terms of maintenance and running costs as an attached greenhouse will benefit from being very simple to adapt to your existing lighting, heating and water sources. The major disadvantage here however is that being attached to your home means the greenhouse will have less direct exposure to the sun which may limit the types of plants you can grow effectively and positioning to minimise this is all important. A permit may also be required as this will be seen as a building extension to your home.

A free standing greenhouse on the other hand, offers many gardeners a much welcomed retreat away from the home, somewhere to escape the madness as it were. They are typically more expensive, requiring additional heating during the winter months and cooling during the hottest periods and you will also need to plan how to get electricity and a water to your new building. Your greenhouse will however have maximum exposure to sunlight.

What Size Greenhouse Do You Need?

Before you can begin thinking about anything else you need to know what size greenhouse you require. As a rule of thumb, whatever size you think you need right now is going to be too small for you a year later. Buy bigger than you need or you’ll end up looking at a costly extension or a new greenhouse before long.

However, that doesn’t mean you need to go overboard. If space is an issue then a lean-to greenhouse which attaches to the side of your house or other building might be the perfect solution. Equally, a mini greenhouse or a simple cold frame might cover your needs. Whichever size you choose, be sure to check out whether you need planning permission from your local authority before you put anything anywhere or you could be told to remove it later.

Which Frame Is Best?

Wooden, Metal or PVC? Experienced hobby greenhouse owners will tell you all about the benefits of a wooden frame. If you are building your own greenhouse then wood is also the easiest to work with. Wood is also a strong frame suitable for any covering you choose and if properly maintained will last a long time. The side benefit of wood comes about when you want to drive hooks in here and there to hang tools on or otherwise affix things to the frame. This is a simple hammer job with a wooden frame but a pain with an aluminium or galvanised steel frame. Wood does however need regular maintenance to protect against the humidity of the greenhouse environment and insects.

Aluminium, galvanised steel or other metal frame requires virtually no maintenance and is also strong enough to take any covering you choose. Metal frames do conduct heat and cold however and are therefore more difficult to heat and cool. Plastic frames can only be used with lightweight plastic sheet coverings and are usually only found in small structures likes portable and mini greenhouses.

Which Greenhouse Covering?

The four basic choices of covering you will find for a home greenhouse are the traditional glass panes, polycarbonate, fibreglass or polythene plastic sheeting. There really is no ‘perfect’ covering or construction material for a greenhouse, and what you choose will ultimately be as much reliant upon your budget as it is upon your requirements.

Plastic sheeting is cheap and the choice of commercial growers although probably not suited to the home user as it is less than attractive to look at, tears easily and typically needs replacing within 1 to 5 years.

For the hobbyist, the choice is most likely to be between a glass, fibreglass or polycarbonate cover. Glass is the traditional choice of greenhouse covering for hobbyists and of the three, allows the most unfiltered light to penetrate through and is the most attractive if your greenhouse is going to be a feature of your garden. It does however require a strong, sturdy frame and solid foundation and if your greenhouse is going to be placed near trees, around kids playing ball or in a particularly windy area or if you just happen to be a particularly clumsy gardener, can prove to be an expensive option. A glass greenhouse can also prove difficult to keep heated in the colder months and tough to keep cool in the summer months as glass is such a good conductor, heat and cold just pass through.

The major alternative to glass is polycarbonate. Polycarbonate sheets are lighter than glass and far less prone to breakage. Sunlight penetration through polycarbonate is less than achieved with a plain glass cover however, but as light diffuses through the sheets, plants are less likely to burn under strong sunlight. Single polycarbonate is as attractive as glass but the real value in polycarbonate comes from the double or triple thickness sheets which have an in-built air space between each sheet and can save a lot of money on heating costs.

Fiberglass is a lightweight solution which allows roughly the same amount of light to pass through as glass but is less aesthetically pleasing and is prone to staining over time.

Heating, Lighting & Ventilation

Depending on what you want your greenhouse for, you should consider the associated heating, lighting and ventilation requirements. For many, the requirements of their greenhouse is driven as much by their pocketbook as it is by any other requirements. The initial outlay is easy to see but hidden costs such as heating, lighting and cooling requirements are often overlooked. By chosing the right greenhouse in the first place you can often cut down on such costs - remember - glass and metal are conductors and are therefore harder to heat during the winter months which can prove costly if you are prone to long, cold periods. A lean-to greenhouse attached to the side of a building can, with a little bit of forethought, make use of that building’s heating and lighting sources potentially saving money on both initial set-up and running costs.

Mark Falco is the owner of ukgardeningsupplies.co.uk - a UK gardening shopping guide featuring cheap greenhouses and more gardening tools, equipment and supplies at low prices from UK online garden centres and nurseries.

It is that time of year again. The water companies are sending
us notices to reduce watering in our gardens.

What are you doing to help conserve this precious commodity?

Often we don’t appreciate something until it’s gone! That can
really be true with water. Taken for granted when it is
plentiful, its importance is truly appreciated in the garden
once it becomes scarce. If you find yourself in a drought, there
are some things you can do to help conserve water and make the
best use of what you have available.

If you have not already mulched your plants, do it! Mulch will
help limit the amount of water that evaporates from the soil.
While organic mulches such as grass clippings or wood chips are
preferable since they add organic matter to the soil, plastic
mulches are useful in limiting evaporation from the soil. They
can be laid between rows in the vegetable garden and will help
limit moisture loss; however, they also will limit infiltration.

Place your water where it will do the most good. Sprinklers are
very inefficient for getting water to the roots of your plants.
Much of the water lands on the leaves and evaporates before
reaching the ground. A slow gentle watering at the base of the
plants, allowing the water to soak into the soil, will be most
efficient.

Water those plants needing it most. Newly planted trees, shrubs,
and flowers with limited roots systems will most likely suffer
first from drought conditions. Give these plants priority if
water is scarce. Well-established plants, especially those
native to the area, are likely to withstand drought conditions
with limited damage.

Water in the early morning before the heat of the day. This
limits evaporation and supplies plants with needed moisture to
make it through the hot, sunny day.

Consider using drip or trickle rrigation systems. Many
inexpensive, easy to install systems are available that provide
small amounts of water to the base of individual plants. These
systems place the water where it is needed most, rather than
applying it across the whole garden. Check with your local
garden center.

Collect water from downspouts when it rains. Roofs intercept
significant amounts of rain. Collecting this runoff into a
barrel can help limit the use of city or well water during dry
spells.

Are you looking to imporve your backyard landscaping? Look no
further we have plenty of suggestions on our website.

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