Friday, April 22, 2005

Green Thumb Gifts: Beyond Gardening Gloves

Green Thumb Gifts: Beyond Gardening Gloves
by A. Heath

Ahh, spring! It has sprung! Gardeners (and budding gardeners -
no pun intended) have begun the quest for a weedless lawn, or a
bountiful garden. But if you're looking for gifts for someone with
a green thumb (or someone with green thumb envy), consider the
situation first.

Some people think of gardening as a chore. Others see it as
relaxing. Some will see it as exercise, and still others consider
it art. Some people have the magic touch in the garden, while
others couldn't grow mold if they tried! This is important when
considering gardening gifts. You need to know if you should give
something to make gardening easier, more fulfilling, more
challenging, or more fun.

For those people who see it as a chore, gardening just adds more
items onto the never-ending to-do list. In this case, you need to
consider gardening gifts that will make these outdoor chores easier,
faster, and less of a hassle.

Power tools and storage & organization aids usually fall into this
category, along with the ever popular lawn tractor. A leaf
blower/vacuum can make clean-up a breeze (again - no pun intended).
The same can be said for a pressure washer. Heavy jobs are made
easier with a wheelbarrow or yard cart. And organizing a collection
of garden tools is simple with a storage bench or shed. Other ideas
include a convenient watering timer.

If your gift recipient enjoys gardening as a hobby, you'll want to
take a look at gardening gifts that can bring more fulfillment or
enjoyment to the outdoors. They would benefit from a magazine
subscription like "Garden Design", or a gardening book ("Front Yard
Gardens: Growing More Than Grass") to help cultivate their ideas.
Garden enthusiasts like to sit back and enjoy their hard work,
so patio furniture and accessories would also be a great gift.

And let's not forget the gardener wanna-be: those whom we love that
just can't seem to keep that plant alive - whose thumb isn't really
green at all! Start off with a how-to book like "Lawn Care For
Dummies" or "Taylor's Encyclopedia of Garden Plants", and complement
that with some basic gardening tools or accessories. These types of
gifts would also be great for first-time home buyers.

For the gardener who already "has it all", you might want to consider
something a little more unique, like an indoor grow light, solar
stepping stones, or a cascading fountain. And if you're just not
sure what to get, there's always a gift certificate or gift card.

For more gardening gift ideas, visit
http://www.the-gift-wizard.com/gardening-gifts.html

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
A. Heath is a gift researcher for http://www.the-gift-wizard.com

Tuesday, April 19, 2005

Installing a Brick or Paver Walkway

Installing a Brick or Paver Walkway

The key to installing a Brick or Paver Walkway is to first
properly prepare the area where the bricks/pavers are to be
installed. The area should be dug out at least a foot down,
removing all topsoil and clay soil.

Once the area has been dug down, 3/4" gravel stone should be
laid in and tamped down tightly. Then sand, or stone dust
should be spread over the gravel. Again the sand/stone dust
should be tamped down. Stone dust is preferred.

Now that you have a stable base, place a 1" pipe or ledger
board the length of the walkway on either side of the
walkway. Then using a flatedge, e.g. a 2"x4" slide it over
the two lengths of the pipe/ledger board. In doing this you
will create a level surface area to lay the bricks/pavers.

Now place on the level sand/stone dust strips of plastic
brick borders. Install a run on both sides of the prepared
area. These strips will act as your walkway border and help
to maintain the integrity and shape of the walkway. You can
get these plastic strip borders at most Home Improvement
stores such as Home Depot or Lowes. The strips should be
anchored down with 12" galvinized nails. You should sink
these nails into the ground and through the strips every
foot.

Once this is done, you can then begin to lay the
bricks/pavers. There are many patterns you can lay. I
particularly like the Herring Bone pattern. The key to
laying the bricks/pavers is to ensure that they interlock
with each other. Always stagger adjacent rows of bricks by
1/2 of a brick to interlock them. This will again help
maintain the integrity of the walkway.

Inevitably bricks/pavers will need to be cut or split when
building the walkway. Unless you want to buy or rent an
expensive wetsaw, I would suggest purchasing a simple
brick/paver splitter. It is basically a chisel with a wide
end that is the width of the bricks/pavers. To actually
cut/split the brick/paver, lay it in a bed of sand and place
the chisel at a 75% angle over the spot where you want to
break the brick. Then using a hammer strike the butt end of
the chisel firmly. You may need to do this a couple of
times. You may also want to flip the brick/paver over and
strike the other side of the brick using the hammer and
chisle. Within one or two strikes the brick/paver should
break cleanly. If your walkway has curves you will need to
buy/rent a wetsaw.

After installing the bricks, build up the outside edges with
additional sand, and then shovel in the topsoil and pack
down firmly.

Finally, spread stone dust over the new walkway and sweep
into the cracks. Repeat this process a couple of times to
ensure the cracks are fully filled. This will complete the
interlocking of the bricks and help to eliminate any weed
growth. Just add grass seed to the outside edges and you
should have a beautiful entrance to your home within a
couple of weeks.

About the Author:

Over the past 20+ years Mr. Donovan has been involved with
building homes and additions to homes. His projects have
included: building a vacation home, building additions and
garages on to existing homes, and finishing unfinished
homes. Mr. Donovan's formal education and profession have
been as an Electrical Engineer and Marketing Manager. Email
Mr. Donovan at me_donovan@comcast.net or visit either his
website http://www.homeadditionplus.com or blog site
http://www.homeaddition.blogspot.com.

Mark J. Donovan
www.homeadditionplus.com
www.HomeAddition.blogspot.com