April Gardening Tips

April Gardening Tips

One of the nicest months in the southwest. (if the wind is not blowing)
You may plant just about anything such as tomato plants, fruit trees
shade trees, evergreen shrubs, flowering shrubs, bulbs etc. It is also
the month that garden centers usually are fully stocked, at least in
the southwest.

Fertilize your bermuda or warm season grasses at this time if you have
not done so in late March. You may also fertilize your fescue, rye, or
bluegrass (cool season) lawns if it has been more than 6 weeks since
you've last fertilized. 16-8-8 with iron, zinc, and sulphur works well
if you do not have a problem with weeds. This can be used on both warm
season and cool season grasses at this time of year.

If you have oleander, now is the time to cut back any winter damaged
leaves or stems it may have suffered from the cold. Shear oleander if
you want them to look full and bushy or you may selectively prune
branches to give it a more open and air look. You may also prune them
into multi-trunked trees, which look quite picturesque when mature.

Lantana plants may be just coming out of their dormant period at this
time. It is best to pull away any mulch that may be around the base of
the crown, to allow the sun to heat up the soil and allow it to "wake
up" from it's winter sleep. Don't let these plants fool you, they may
look dead, but 9 times out of 10 they are just dormant. They need quite
a bit of heat to start growing. Be patient!

Roses may should still be in stock at this time and take well to being
planted at this time. For existing roses, fertilizing is key. I
recommend a water soluable fertizier such as Peters Tm 20-20-20 every
other week, for healthy foliage and multiple blooms. In addition to
this use a soil acidifier such as Ironite Tm or Grow More Tm organic
chelated iron. These products help keep foliage dark green and give
flowers more vibrant colors.

Feed all trees, and shrubs at this time. There are many product to
choose from. It is best to look for a product that is easiest for you
to use. Most plant will respond to just about any kind of fertilizer as
long as it is applied correctly. Stop by and we can help take any
confusion out of this situation, or you can e-mail or call.
505-523-1520

Thanks from

Gary Guzman

Lots of new stuff at: guzmansgreenhouse.com

Can you recommend honing or sharpening tools...?

Can you recommend specific honing or sharpening tools for keeping the
blades of pruners, loppers, and scuffle hoes sharp? I have seen
Arkansas oilstones, synthetic sharpening "stones", pruner sharpeners,
etc. What is the best all-purpose tool and do you recommend coarse,
medium or fine stones or a combination of stones?

**********************

To briefly answer your question, use a whetstone to sharpen pruners and
fine gardening knives (such as Japanese gardening knives). Large-bladed
shears and loppers, shovels, hoes, etc., can be sharpened with a
medium-grit mill bastard file, and finshed with a finer grit file or
whetstone.

The Benefits Of Incorporating Your Business

The Benefits Of Incorporating Your Business

Connecticut Secretary
http://www.connecticutsecretary.com/

What do General Motors, Microsoft, AT&T and many other major
businesses in America have in common? They?re corporations.

A corporation is a separate legal entity that functions separate
and apart from its shareholders or owners. You can incorporate
on your own without an attorney, although it wouldn?t hurt to
seek legal advice. And you can incorporate in your home state
or any other state of your choosing.

More than half a million business entities have their legal home
in business-friendly Delaware, including more than 50 percent of
all U.S. publicly-traded companies and 58 percent of the Fortune
500. Nevada, New York, California, Arizona and Florida are also
magnets for businesses wanting to incorporate.

Protection Against Personal Liability

Incorporating offers a variety of legal and tax advantages. For
one, it?s one of the best ways a business owner can protect his
or her personal assets. As a separate legal entity, a corporation
is responsible for its own debts. Shareholders of a corporation
are generally not liable for the obligations of the corporation.
Therefore, creditors of a corporation can seek payment from the
assets of a corporation, but not the assets of its shareholders.
This means that business owners can conduct business without
risking their homes or other personal property.

Tax Advantages

Many businesses choose to incorporate for tax advantages.
Corporate profits aren?t subject to Social Security, Medicare,
workers compensation and other taxes, which adds up to 15.3
percent in taxes. An individual proprietor would need to pay all
of these taxes, commonly referred to as ?self-employment taxes?
on all income earned by the business. But with a corporation,
only salaries are subject to these taxes.

C-corporations provide even greater tax flexibility when it comes
to profits. By simply dividing income between the corporation and
the shareholders, businesses can save thousands of dollars each
year on taxes. With a C-corporation, the first $50,000 in profits
is taxed at only 15 percent -- plus, there are no Social Security
or Medicare taxes.

If you incorporate in a tax-free state like Nevada or Delaware,
there are no state income taxes. Therefore, if you?re in the
28-percent tax bracket and shift $50,000 of your personal income
into a corporation, you could save about $14,000 per year. (This
figure includes the money saved by not paying social security
and Medicare taxes).

Corporations also enjoy the ability to deduct business operating
losses. In fact, they have very few restrictions on operating
and capital losses. You can generally carry losses back three
years forward for 15 years. But sole proprietorships have
stricter rules. They?re also subject to a higher probability
of a tax audit if there are losses.

Speaking of audits, that brings us to another benefit of
incorporating. Corporate returns have fewer "red flags" than
individual returns. Consequently, the IRS conducts fewer audits
on corporations than individuals.

Fringe Benefits and Other Deductions

Corporations also enjoy a variety of fringe benefits and other
deductions. A corporation can set up a 401(k), for example,
that would allow you to exclude a higher amount of income than
a regular IRA. And employee savings may also be doubled with a
corporate matching program. Corporations also can deduct 100
percent of the health insurance premiums paid on behalf of an
owner-employee.

Additionally, a corporation can deduct other expenses like
automobile insurance, education benefits and life insurance.
But for sole proprietors, these expenses are subject to strict
limitations (if deductible at all) and can be "red flags" that
trigger an audit.

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Copyright 2005
Kate Smalley, Connecticut Secretary
Freelance Secretarial and Transcription Services
http://www.connecticutsecretary.com
mailto:kms@connecticutsecretary.com