Week 168 - how many had their kitchen under construction this year?
6 years ago
Did you remodel this year and how's your progress?
It's going on three years with my construction. Part DIY and part professional. The delay comes from the unexpected cost of having to remodel the kitchen and paying as I go as well as health problems and parents health problems.
I have so little left to go so ....
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6 years ago- 6 years ago
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How many have had to resort to containers
Comments (14)There is a nurseryman who sells at our local farmers market . Below I have copied his writing explaining his view on potting soils in a newsletter he sends out. I am having better results with the peat/pumice mix when I add some sand and some of my soil than with the usual store bought mixes. As Gary says, the bagged mixes at the stores usually have a more limited life. Using longer lasting mixes allows you to save some work by repotting less often. If I were not growing roses in the ground, I would be using raised beds. We have an elderly neighbor who does all of her gardening in tall brick sided raised beds and it allows her to continue gardening. She can sit on the bricks and work with the plants. A concrete path allows her to use her walker to easily reach the beds. I find that the polyanthas and smaller roses do very well in pots and that young hybrid teas like 1/2 barrels or 15 gallon cans. I don't mind hand watering them but the summer can dry a pot with a large rose in it out in half a day. Dry roses quit flowering in my experience. The other caution is about sunlight baking the sides of the pot and killing roots. Some growers will place a mark on the sun side of the pot so that they don't turn it and cook another area of roots. I prefer just to shade my pots or place them in larger pots so that I can keep all the roots cool and in good health. I'm not trying to sell Gary's soils, but I wanted to share his views on potting soils and the recent use of growers to use a soil with a very short life in order to raise plants for market fast but which cause trouble for the plants/ buyers later whe the plants are installed. We both think bareroot is best for planting in pots and in the ground. From Gary's Newsletter- LHN Potting Soil ACID MIX 1 cubic foot $10 Although this soil was specially created for Azaleas, Blueberries, Camellias, and Ferns it is not too acidic for most plants. I use it in containers for growing all annuals (flowers and vegetables) and plants that require lots of moisture (Hydrangeas and Roses). It is especially valuable for outdoor use in smaller containers (6" or less in diameter) where moisture retention is critical. It can lose about 10-15% of its volume within 18 months as the peat moss breaks down, but retains excellent permeability due to the pumice. It is actually a good soil substitute or replacement when used in the ground. I have beautiful Azalea in Ferns in the ground growing in 100% ACID MIX for well over a decade. Ingredients: Peat moss & Pumice (about 1:1) LHN Tropical POTTING SOIL 1 cubic foot $10 This soil was created for those plants that require well-drained (highly permeable) soil especially in permanent (at least several years) applications. It is also ideal for all indoor potting applications. We haven't observed any significant shrinkage of its volume over many years of use. It's water retention is about 25% lower than the ACID MIX, so use with caution in small containers outdoors. It is acidic enough to grow most acid-loving plants. Ingredients: Pumice, peat moss, sand (about 6:3:1) Our potting soils do not have time release nutrients added. The brands that include it can be toxic if moistened and not used immediately. I like to add a time release, like Osmocote, at the time of planting and follow it with organic fertilizers at monthly intervals (we sell these also). Plants potted in our soils can sit in a deep saucer of water for extended periods to provide moisture when you are on vacation. The majority of other brands will rot and stink when left submerged. Also water draining from pots filled with our soil is clear. Many other brands leach out a brownish red color that discolors pavement. When I grow our trees and shrubs in containers, I mix our ACID MIX with construction sand at a ratio of 1:1. Many of our customers like this mixture for the added weight. I like using sand because it is the main component of the finest natural soils and allows plants grown in it to perform better when installed into the landscape. WARNING: OTHER POTTING SOILS ARE ONLY SUITABLE FOR TEMPORARY APPLICATIONS! A University of California researcher confirms that just about all commercial brands of potting soil are meant for 5 months of use. This short period is due to the temporary nature of the materials chosen. Most potting soils contain composted bark and/or sawdust which lose permeability and gradually become less habitable as the chunks of organic matter decompose and shrink. Apparently the 5 month period is acceptable as most potted plants in the US (other than mild Orange County) freeze or are allowed to die during winter and replaced every spring along with fresh soil. These same researcher also found that most commercial soils, even when fresh, are suitable for growing only a small percentage of extra hardy (tolerant of poor soil) plants. They were able to grow vigorous Impatiens but found that ferns and Cyclamen did poorly. I have also found that most potting soils are not permeable enough to allow vigorous root development, especially when used in large containers. Most potting soils are actually compost. The more you use, the less oxygen is available for root health. This is why some "experts" tell you to increase container size in small increments. Too much fresh compost at one time will suffocate and kill the roots! (see below) In contrast, our potting soils behave more like real soil. The more you use, the better the results. You can use them over and over. Just follow the rules of crop rotation and don't plant the same (or closely related) plant twice in a row. Even more important, you can irrigate freely. Our soils are nearly immune from too much watering. Many of our customers have used our potting soils in the ground, either as an amendment, and often as a replacement with excellent results. Don't give up trying to grow a particular kind of plant until you've tried growing it in our potting soils. The Science Behind Potting Soil Plant roots require water retention, air exchange, support, insulation, and nutrient storage. Unfortunately, the first two of these are usually in opposition. Any soil that has high water retention has less air exchange, just because water is taking the place of air. Our Laguna Hills Nursery soils combine peat moss, the best natural material for water storage (Clay holds more water, but won't release it) and pumice, the most permeable natural material (70% space, 30% rock). In our atmosphere the oxygen content is roughly 21% and the carbon dioxide is 0.03%. Research from the University of North Carolina shows that the air in the soil of container plants can be anywhere from 0%-21% oxygen and 0.03%-21% carbon dioxide. High levels of carbon dioxide can inhibit root growth. More importantly the oxygen must remain above 12% for active root growth and above 3% to stay alive. The problem with most potting soils is that they depend upon the structure of organic matter to create free air flow. Peat moss, bark and sawdust all have great air exchange initially, but because they are not permanent materials, problems eventually occur. Generally (different materials and even parts of organic materials decompose at different rates) within 6-18 months the airflow through the organic materials decreases considerably. Moist organic matter gradually turns to "muck". On top of that the decomposition continues and compounds more toxic than carbon dioxide are produced when the supply of oxygen is compromised. I've noticed that plants under such poor conditions produce small, off-colored foliage usually showing tip burn (resembling salt burn). AVAILABLE THIS WEEK...See MoreWeek 4: I had to put my dog down :(
Comments (40)Thank you all for you kind words. The sad thing about this dog is that she was my fourth rottie, but the least liked out of all my dogs. So I wasn't as emotionally attached to her as I was to my others, I still felt horrible about making the decision that an animal is going to die. My boss said that I should think of it as to how lucky she was, because if anyone else had her, she would probably have been put down, or just a guard dog at some industrial park. Which is true, she was difficult and lucky to be living with me. Those words made me feel better. Every day gets a little easier, but it is just a weird feeling to go from a home with a dog to a home without a dog. I think about taking a walk with the dog and then realize there is no dog. Also I felt very secure with her, because she was an excellent watch dog. I didn't realize how secure I felt until she was no longer in the home. Thanks again for all your hugs!!! I will try to post some pictures next week of some of remodel happenings. Karin...See MoreConstruction to start in 2 weeks - totally in a panic!
Comments (9)Momx9, chill. :) You won't need months of rumination or hundreds of plans to pull this together. Given a limited budget and family of 11 always in flux, the typical "perfect plan" goal is not only not attainable but also specifically undesirable since the kind of "perfection" some people manage to achieve for themselves is for one person at one specific time of life. That has nothing to do with you guys! You just need to open up your kitchen and improve its function. You need flexibility. That's before even mentioning budget. I'm sure you guys have any number of worthy ways to allocate your money, so keeping budget at the top of your list of priorities will simplify your decision-making tremendously. Flexibility saves money because it means not building in everything possible everywhere you can find a place for something. So, 2 main goals here so far 1. Opening up the kitchen on both sides. 2. Improving function. Anything else? One thing that's not been properly explored is...what's WRONG with your current layout? What does not work for you guys? Given your budget, and ALL THE FEATURES YOU LIKE THAT YOU ALREADY HAVE AND WANT TO KEEP, if possible, by far the best course would be to tweak what you have, and the answers to the what's-wrong question will determine what can be kept and what has to be changed. Stove wall: To start, you can keep the stove and dishwasher where they are, keep the SS counters, keep the stove hood, AND open the kitchen to the family room safely IF you settle for opening that wall on the right and left sides of the stove and keeping the wall right behind the stove (and the hood) in place. The wall on each side could be opened right down to the counter and deepened toward the family room if you like. This compromise would accomplish probably 90% of what you want: Both areas would feel more spacious and open. People in the two rooms could see and communicate with each other. If you wanted stools on the family room side, you could place some safely enough at one or both of the open stretches of counter if you deepened them toward the family room. Those counters, with or without stools, would offer extra places for people to work, cooking or schoolwork, as needed. The wall behind the stove could be an attractive display area that multifunctioned by hiding some kitchen mess. If you deepened the counter beyond the depth of the wall the two ends count be connected across the wall as a display shelf. OR, you could open the whole wall, leaving it raised above the work counter to provide some protection from flying grease, boiling water, etc. This is not optimal but is doable, especially if you do not have seating there. You can display art projects on the raised ledge instead. :) Breakfast/mudroom side: If you can improve your kitchen nicely essentially in its current footprint (again, contingent on being able to solve dysfunctions), there will be no need to decide about developing a mudroom right now. Why do you NEED to remove the U counter on that side? Or do you? You want to open the kitchen to the breakfast area, but removing the counter on that end is not necessary to do that. Leaving it in place would allow you to deepen the counter on that side for stools, multifunctioning, etc., etc. So far I'm not seeing a good reason to go to an island in this case, i.e., nothing of real value gained because of your space limitations. What would you hope to gain from one? If the U isn't working well enough, would a wider U be the answer? Mudroom functions: You need a mudroom but need the breakfast space for other uses right now. Have you considered simply enclosing your covered porch as an entry vestibule, not heating it, just creating a sheltered spot with walls for bench/shelves/hooks/closets?...See MoreI pray no one has the week I've had
Comments (35)i've heard about breaking a rib before but the diaphram??wow...hope you're resting and healing... stella my mother was told to be very careful with muscle spasms in her back as they could do the same thing... my fil was taken to er and they found he has copd, among other things..he just got back home yesterday (2 day stay)...he's mad they put him on advair, at $65! told him if he uses it correctly along with his oxygen, and other meds he might get benefits of NOT going back to er!...See More- 6 years agolast modified: 6 years ago
6 years ago
6 years ago- 6 years ago
Gotta say, I've lost track of how long. We are close, always......need to hang split door, on agenda for tomorrow
floor trim and marble trim.
Not sure about trimming out beam. About 50% say leave as is, good conversation starter.
Why aren't we done? Life happens. Work, kids come home from school, MIL moves in.....DH travels. I start the bathroom ;^)
beachem thanked heatheron40 - 6 years ago
6 years ago
6 years agoThank you. DH designed it but our contractor hired a stone mason to do the work. There is a bluestone patio with a dry stacked bluestone wall just outside the family room and DH wanted to carry the look inside. This photo is after the windows went in but before the new floor went down. I had hoped to make a before and after photo book as a Christmas gift for DH but we still have boxes in the living room and we're waiting for furniture - some new, some being re-upholstered). Then I can post more photos.
Maire
- 6 years ago
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