Archive for June, 2009


Bonsai, as a Japanese art form, is more regulated than it’s Chinese counterpart, the penjing. Bonsai attempts to achieve the ideal tree, while penjing attempts to reproduce nature. This is why perfect styling exists in bonsai if you obey the ‘rules’, while penjing leave you free to your creation. As a result these are the basic styles :

Broom (Hokidachi or Hoki-zukuri)

A very harmonious style, this form has branches that develop at a certain height, forming an upside broom. This styling is mainly achieved through a technique called the “V” cut. The trunk is chopped where you want the branch to start to develop and then a deep V cut is performed on the remaining trunk. This will induce buds to break near the cut. Zelkova serrata are notorious for this styling but maple and other deciduous species can easily be styled that way.
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In many homes, especially in suburban and rural locations, the patio is one of the most cherished places in the home. Patios remind us of good times with friends and family, as the kids play and the ribs sizzle on the barbecue. Many of us also spend a considerable amount of money on our patio furniture and equipment to make it a more inviting and charming location.

Patio awnings are one way to increase the enjoyment of your patio experience. Patio awnings provide shelter from summer heat and provide much-needed shade on those sweltering evening cookouts. Patio awnings are increasing in popularity and are available in an endless variety of styles, colors and options.

Some people like the fact that patio awnings seem to add space and square footage to a home. A patio in itself is an attractive feature of any home. When you add patio awnings, however, it seems almost as if a room has been added to the home. A patio awning seems to almost enclose the patio and creates an outdoor room that everyone is sure to enjoy.
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Home Improvement projects are widely popular credited to the growth of TV series and designer shows. While smaller projects top the list of frequency, such as painting and decorating, all home improvement projects can add up quickly. The savvy shopper will not only shop around for the best deal on fabric, but on home improvement loans as well. There are many reasons why people go for home improvement loans, and just as many ways in which to do so. Common borrowing purposes can basically be divided into two categories. The first would cover things such as buying clothes and other purchases on credit cards, using store credit, and taking advantage of buy now pay later or other store financing offers, or perhaps borrowing to pay for a holiday.

The many toget Home Improvement loans are as follows:

1. Personal Loans: Most home owners meet their home improvement loans requirement for home improvement through personal loans. This can save thousands in interest payments. Though mostly widely preferred, the interest rates are subject to market conditions.
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8:59 PM 4/28/2006

As we drove by the plush residential homes, some recently covered with a fresh coating of paint and with the variously landscaped yards displaying their beautiful spired shrubs, flowering gardens and well watered green lawns, it could not be helped but to notice the evenly placed lawn bags filled to the brim with yard waste, just waiting to be carried away by the scheduled garbage pickup. So much labor must have gone into neatly and
carefully packing each one of them so they wouldn’t be torn open by a stiff twig or two. Each fall and spring a similar scene is reenacted by most of us who seasonally do our traditional yard cleanup.

Having been a fairly devout organic gardener in the 1980′s and traditionally would save every bit of waste clippings from our yard that would then go into a 4×4 foot by 4 feet high loosely constructed wooden bin for later processing and churning into a fine mulch, it was difficult to see virtually truckloads of “Organic Gold Plant Food” just waiting to
be carted away to some landfill, or just possibly be used for fuel in some local utility supplier’s furnace. It is beyond my understanding how this “fuel” for plants can be placed on the discard list.
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