Best Winter Houseplants

Don’t feel like tending to outdoor winter plants this season? No worries. There’s plenty of flowering plants that do well in your home. Here are some of our favorites.

Lavender. A famous plant and go-to herb for aromatherapy, soaps and other yummy things, lavender is one of the best indoor plants to grow in the winter. Lavender will grow from a seed if you wish to start from scratch, or you can pick up a young plant. Clearly, the benefit of a young plant is that you get to instantly enjoy the fragrance and pretty purple-blue flowers. You’ll want to place your lavender plant in your home’s sunniest window.

Jasmine. Originating in Asia, jasmine is very simple to care for if you keep your home’s temperature in the high 60’s to low 70’s. Make sure to place this starry-flowering plant in an east or south-facing window and don’t let the soil dry out. Also, jasmine will climb a trellis, so stake one in the pot if you’d like!

Citrus. Yes – really! You don’t need to live in Florida to enjoy citrus fruits such as grapefruit, lemon, or oranges. All you need is a very bright spot in your house, and follow these easy directions from HGTV on how to properly care for your citrus plants.

Geraniums. Are you a fan of lemon, lime, rose, ginger, or even chocolate? Who isn’t? Geraniums are available in all of these fragrances, but did you know the fragrance comes not from flowers but from their hairy leaves? Your local nursery can tell you which they have in stock and which would work best for your home.

What’s your favorite indoor plant for the winter?

Composting 101

Composting isn’t just for farmers and country-dwellers. Here’s a list of ways you can compost in your backyard and do your part to contribute to our environment.

First off: what is compost? Compost is a mix of decaying vegetables, grass clippings, leaves and other organic matter. If you’re a gardener, compost is a fabulous fertilizer for your beds because it’s rich in yeast, fungi, and bacteria, and best of all – it’s free!

Photo cred: howtocompost.org

So let’s get started. Compost is just a mixture of brown matter and green matter. Shredded leaves, straw and twigs make up the brown matter, and grass clippings, veggies, fruit scraps, and even coffee grounds make up green matter. Mix it all together and add a little water and soil. That’s it.

Every week or two, rotate the pile and keep adding materials until the pile reaches three to five feet. Your pile will be good to use around six months – so get started now!

The biggest question we see is: what do I put compost in? You don’t have to buy one of those fancy compost bins (unless you want to!). You can grab a big compost bin at Lowe’s or Home Depot – they’ll be the ones with a sealed lid and little door to add materials.

Don’t forget: everything you put in your bin should be organic, so absolutely no herbicide treated grasses or plants. If you want to add manure, feel free, but be sure the animal it’s coming from was not fed meet (that also means no meat off your table should enter the bin as well).

Are you an experienced composter and have a tip to share? Do so below in the comments!

Winter Garage Checklist

It’s so easy to let your garage get out of control. After all, you went through the whole thing during spring cleaning (right?), so why tackle it again before next spring? Here’s just a few things we recommend taking care of now.

Store summer vehicles like sports cars, ATVs, and motorcycles (even the kid’s mini RVs – don’t you wish you had one when you were little? Anyway…). Now is also a great time to have them serviced—then they’ll be ready for you to take them out on the road when the weather is nice again.

Pull out the winter equipment, as much as it may pain you. Make sure your snow blowers are serviced and working properly, and grab some tanks of gasoline so you’re ready. Rochester weather is unpredictable, so be prepared.  Make sure shovels are useable, too. Loose handles might need some glue, or replaced entirely.

Have a generator? Test it out now before you need it. Did we mention buying extra gasoline?

Organize. Organize. Organize. You’ll thank yourself later. Clean off spring yard tools and box up toys before the cold comes. Storing yard tools in a big bucket of sand will help eliminate rust (and the need to replace them when spring comes).

Quick Halloween Decorations

Is your front porch lacking in the Halloween department? It’s easy to lose track of time to decorate for the holiday, but you don’t want your house looking unattractive to trick-or-treaters, right? After all, the more trick-or-treaters you have, the less candy you’ll be left with (oh, darn) when the night is over—so recruit the kids and try some of these fun Halloween decorating ideas from HGTV.

Cat Pumpkins

This one is super easy. Grab some medium sized pumpkins, black paint, a white Sharpie, craft foam and a hot glue gun. Paint the pumpkins black, cut out black ears, pink nose and white whiskers out of foam, and glue them on. Spooky.

Cookie Cutter Pumpkin Carving

It’s as easy as it sounds. Dump the tarp, various blades, and impossibly difficult stencils. After you gut the pumpkin, grab your favorite cookie cutters like ghosts, cats, stars and moons, and use a rubber mallet to make your way through the pumpkin. Done!

Pumpkin Totem

Head to the store and grab the following: 3 faux pumpkins of the same(ish) size, black craft ribbon, black and white acrylic paint, a paint brush, and a glue gun. Take your first pumpkin and set it on the ground. Take the middle pumpkin and cut a hole in the bottom and place it over the first pumpkin’s stem (we’re stacking here – following?). Do the same for the third and glue the pumpkins together. Next, grab that ribbon and paint and create fun faces.

Trash Bag Spider Webs

Chances are, no shopping is needed for this easy decoration if you have black plastic bags, scissors, and Scotch Tape on hand. Making these involves quite a bit of folding a cutting, so here is the full set of directions.

Do you have any other fun and easy ideas to share?

Fall Home Checklist

As much as we hate to admit it, the warm days have gone and fall is upon us. While the temperatures are still tolerable, now is the best time to prep your house for cooler days (rain, sleet, and – yes – snow). We know how quickly the weather can change, so get out there and use this maintenance checklist

Exterior List

Number one on the list should be a roof check. Grab some binoculars if you can’t see well enough from the ground and a trip up is out of the question.  While you’re out there, do a perimeter check of all siding. Look for cracks and holes and repair the damages you see (or hire a contractor to help you out).

If you have a chimney or fireplace, have them inspected and cleaned. The same goes for your gutters. Fallen leaves from trees can build up and cause major backups when the rain and snow (there’s that S word again!) comes.

They’re a pain to wind up and store, but you should really stow away your sprinklers and hoses. Make sure they’re not full of water first, and toss them in the garage until next year.

It’s important to take a look at your landscaping, too. Loose branches on trees can cause serious damage if they fall around (or on) your home, and piles of leaves can cause outside mold very quickly.

Interior List

Check for drafts around your home on the edges of windows and around doors. Can’t tell if there’s a draft? Grab a candle and run the flame around the window or door and if it flickers, there’s a good chance you need to replace a seal or repair caulking.

Hire an HVAC contractor to test your furnace for leaks and check heading efficiency. The last thing you need is for your furnace to need a tune-up when it gets really cold. It’s a good idea to run a CO2 check at the same time.

Invest in a programmable thermostat if you do not have one already. When you’re not home, set the temperature lower so you can save money on energy bills.

Stock up on batteries and replace all batteries in smoke detectors and CO2 devices and make sure they work properly.

Things To Do In Rochester This Fall

It’s starting to get a little brisk and rainy, but there’s still a ton to do for families in Rochester. Whether you’re just moving to the area or have been a resident for many years, we’ve compiled a list of our favorite fall activities to keep you busy this season.

Wayne County Apple Tasting Trail

Location: Apple Tasting Trail, Lyons, NY

When: October 1-31

Taste delicious, locally grown apples, and delicious cider.

Barnyard Adventure at Brown’s Berry Patch

Location: Brown’s Berry Patch, Waterport, NY

When: Now through November

Ride farm tractors, watch duck races, adventure through a rope maze.

ZOOBOO

Location: Seneca Park Zoo

When: 10 AM to 4 PM Saturdays and Sundays (Oct. 18, 19, 25, & 26)

Take the kids trick-or-treating and support orangutan conservation.

Holiday Hollow

Location: Just off exit 48 (Darien Lake Exit) off the 90

When: every weekend in October (http://holidayhollow.com/Holiday_Hollow/Show_Times_and_Prices.html)

Check out the haunted parlor, shop for pumpkins, and watch various plays.

Fall Sky Ride

Location: Bristol Mountain

When: 12 PM to 4PM Saturdays and Sundays in October (Oct. 18, 19, 25 & 26)

Ride the scenic Comet Express chairlift to the summit of Bristol Mountain.

And here’s a list of our favorite places to pick apples:

G&S Orchards – Walworth, NY

Lagoner Farms – Williamson, NY

Morgan’s Farm Market – Marion, NY

Countertop Materials

Choosing the right countertop material for your kitchen or bathroom is an important decision. After all, it’s where you clean up and prepare food, and also has an effect on your home’s value.

Photo Cred: interiordesignable.com

 

Granite. Granite countertops are among the most elegant materials available. They’re also among the most expensive. But if you are up for it, the natural stone has outstanding strength and other beautiful qualities. Granite is highly resistant to scratches and heat, making it an asset to cooking. One downside to granite is that it must be sealed because it is a porous stone and absorbs fluid. If not sealed, it can harbor bacteria. This only needs to be done every 10 to 15 years, however. Granite can run between $100 and $225 per square foot.

Quartz. Known as “engineered stone,” quartz countertops are made from about 90-93% quartz crystals, but are fabricated instead of cut from solid stone. Quartz countertops maintain all of the advantages of natural stone, such as durability, hardness, and beauty, in addition to overcoming stone’s natural weakness. They are not porous so they will not harbor bacteria, and come in a wider range of colors compared to granite. Less per square foot next to granite, quartz will run about $100 to $190 per square foot.

Laminate. Laminate countertops are among the most popular surfaces because of their affordability ($20 to $50 per square foot) and widest range of colors and patterns. Comprised of hard particleboard core and layers of plastic laminate bonded over top, laminate surfaces are tough and fairly durable.

Butcher Block. Rising in popularity in recent years are butcher block counter tops . They are excellent surfaces for food preparation and are often used in conjunction with other surfaces like granite and quarts. Many choose to surface an island with butcher block, while countertops under cabinets remain another material. Because of the wide variety of woods available, prices range anywhere from $30 to $200 per square foot.

It’s important to consider how much maintenance you’re willing to accommodate when selecting a countertop. Families with young children often opt for less expensive surfaces, while avid foodies require more elaborate options.