What you will need:

Growing area

A place to grow the grapes. Ideally, this would be an area that has full sunlight, southern exposure, and fertile, deep, well drained soil. The first two, full sunlight, and southern exposure, are a must. As for the soil, you can modify it to suit your needs. The soil should be cultivated to a depth of 1 to 2 feet (the deeper the better), and should have plenty of organic matter to help it drain well.

Support

The support that I am talking about is not the moral or physical support that you may need to get your grape growing underway, although that too can help from time to time. The support that I am talking about is a system to support your vines to keep them off the ground. This is, of course, a trellis. Some systems are better than others, but the basic trellis can be something as simple as a couple of t-posts driven into the ground with a wire stretched between them, or as complicated as a classic arbor.

Grape vines what type?

You will, of course, have to have grape vines. The varieties you choose are largely a function of your specific region, so you are going to have to do a little research here. There are a number of books, and periodicals on the subject, and the internet has hundreds of articles about growing grapes. There is also one of the most underused resources in the country no more than a phone call away. Your area agriculture extension agent. These guys are wealth of information, and can offer some guidance on other grape growing issues as well. There is another resource available which can help you in every single aspect of growing grapes, and I will give you that information at the end of this article.

Grape vines how to get them

After you have decided what grows well in your area, you can choose from those varieties. Now, how do you acquire the grape vines you need? You can often find rooted cuttings or potted plants at your local nursery. There are nurseries online who will probably have what you need, or if you want to really get involved in the whole experience, you can locate vines of your chosen type and take cuttings. The best time of the year to extract cuttings is just after the grape vines enter dormancy. You will need a cutting with four buds. Make a smooth, clean angled cut about a quarter inch from the bottom bud. If the buds angle does not give a clear indication of which end is the basal end, you may want to mark the basal end so you know which end goes into the ground. Make the top cut angled as well, and an inch or so from the highest bud. Plant these in a potting soil mix which drains well and keep them watered regularly. The cutting should be planted to a depth to cover the bottom two buds.

Let them grow that way until the following years planting season before planting them in the prepared rows.

For further information

What I have given here is a basic outline of the grape growing process. There is a lot of information needed to fill in the gaps. Rather than reinventing the wheel, we decided to make available the most comprehensive grape growing system available today, from an expert in the field.

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LakeAdvice.com offers information on all aspects of pond and lake management, including lake weed and pond algae control, adjusting pH, water clarity issues, and fertilization among many others.

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We get this question a lot: What is the best aquatic weed killer? That is a great question, but unfortunately, it is not that simple. It is sort of like asking: What’s the best saw? Aquatic herbicides, like saws, have different purposes, and work on different weeds. Just as there are small thin perfectly tuned little dovetail saws for meticulous and extremely accurate work, and chainsaws for very heavy rough work, one lake weed killer may be made for getting rid of submersed thin weeds, and another may be specifically formulated for large broad leaf plants above the water level.

There are some aquatic weed killers that do many jobs, for instance, contact weed killers like diquat (Reward) destroy any plant tissue they come in contact with, but only the material they come in contact with. If you are treating an infestation of annual weeds, this will work well. In fact, diquat may be the best overall aquatic weed killer on the market for submersed and emergent weeds, if you pay close attention to the follow up process. See: Lake Management Lake Weed Control Water Depth Secchi Depth

If the weeds you are trying to rid your pond of are perennials, a systemic aquatic herbicide like “Rodeo” or 2,4-D may be more appropriate. Even within this distinction there are limitations. 2,4-D works well on lily pads, but is restricted in some areas, and for some purposes. On hot still days, it can volatilize and float off target. Glyphosates, no matter how much surfactant you use, seem to bead on waxy plants like water Lillis, and don’t work as well. Glyphosates work very well on both broad leaf and grassy weeds in general, as a general purpose non selective systemic herbicide, but they can’t kill what they can’t penetrate.

In short, you need to know the weed and the conditions before selecting an aquatic weed killer. Aquaplant is a great little tool for plant identification, and for choosing the right method of dealing with it, including the best herbicide for each plant.

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This article is on loan from Lake Advice

We are all aware that pond scum may be the fuel production plant of the future, but in the mean time, it is probably not something you want in your recreational fishing pond. For one thing, it is ugly, for another, it is often stinky, and to make matters worse, it can do harm to other forms of aquatic life, and harbor potential disease carriers like mosquitoes.

Different types of pond algae

So, is all algae bad? The answer is a resounding NO! In fact, the best means of preventing pond scum, or filamentous algae, is by producing another type of algae. Plankton. This single cell algae will remain suspended in water, providing food for the tiny animals that provide food for the larger life forms, which in turn, provide food for your fish, and, if you are a successful angler, food for you.

Pond algae control using algae

Not only does this type of algae feed the fish, it also colors the water. That nice green or blue green tint that you see in healthy ponds and lakes is suspended algae, and one of the best services it provides is tinting the water, thereby preventing sunlight from reaching the bottom of the lake or pond, preventing the growth of unwanted vegetation, and providing  pond algae control.

Yes, pond scum, like most aquatic plant life, gets it’s start at the bottom of the pond, and as it gains oxygen, it floats to the top where it produces all sorts of undesirable conditions, like the ones mentioned above, and including lousy fishing conditions, oxygen deprived fish, and frustration.

Algae for tinting the water

Getting rid of pond scum can be a difficult task, and if the conditions that allowed it are not changed, it will return. Remember, the problem is sunlight reaching the bottom of the pond, so something must be done to prevent it from doing so. This could include raising the water level, which may not be possible in all cases, dredging or otherwise making the lake deeper, or coloring the water. The last, is usually the chosen option. There are dyes which can color the water, but, if fish production is what you desire, remember that dyes do not feed the fish. In small ponds for catfish production, where regular feedings occur, this may work, but where no feeding takes place, or where other types of fish are desired, dyes are not the answer. Once again, plankton is needed to continue the life chain, and prevent the pond scum problem.

How to produce plankton to prevent pond algae

So, how do we produce this plankton? The answer is simple: Fertilize the pond. Now before you start thinking that it is a crazy idea, let me do a little explaining. Fertilizer, usually a fertilizer high in phosphorous, will encourage algae production through a process known as algae bloom, and this will produce the coloring needed to stop pond scum. There are a few things you need to check before you fertilize.

• First, get rid of the existing pond scum, and give it time to decompose.
• Second, test the water pH. Anything higher than 8.6, and you need lime to lower the pH. Something between 6.8, and 8.6 is ideal. If it needs correcting, correct it before proceeding.
• Third, check the secchi depth. It should be between 18 and 24 inches. If the secchi depth is less than 18 inches, there is another problem. If it is more than 24, begin fertilizing as soon as possible, and continue the process throughout the summer, or until the depth is less than 18 inches.

Other factors

There are other factors, like muddy water, which will need to be solved before treatment, and you will need to know the details like how to use a secchi disk, and how much fertilizer, which are covered in these articles:

Lake Management | Pond Algae Pond Scum

Lake Management Lake Weed Control Water Depth Secchi Depth

Flocking Reducing Sediment In Lakes

Preventing Pond Scum In Farm Ponds

Making A Fish Pond From A Farm Pond

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A well planned landscape can save you lots of money. A lousy one can cost you lots of money.

Whether you hire a landscaper to install your lawn and landscape, or do it yourself, there are some things you should give close attention to aside from the standard design principles commonly followed today. These tips will help to “green” your lawn and landscape, and keep some green in your wallet.

Soil type and irrigation

What could be more green than saving one of our most important natural resources; water? If you have a heavy clay soil, and you want to grow almost any of our common lawn grasses, you should be certain that the soil is amended properly, or top soil added.

If this is not done, you will be at constant odds with mother nature and your pocketbook when the heat of summer arrives. The best practice for lawn grass irrigation is to water deeply, and infrequently, but if you have hard clay soils, and nothing else to absorb and hold the water for the plants, you will have to water more often, using less water each time to achieve similar results. If you attempt to water deeply on clay soils, the result will be excess runoff. When watering more frequently to avoid runoff, you will still need to have the same amount of water, but it will have to be broken up into several smaller increments. Either way, the water used is less efficient. You will lose water to runoff, or evaporation, neither of which is desirable, and in some places, it is even considered criminal!

To avoid this problem, you need to start before the landscape and lawn are installed, or renovated.

Make sure that there is sufficient top soil to become an adequate root zone for your lawn grasses and landscape beds. Plan your irrigation layout carefully to avoid having tree watering or bed watering on the same station with lawn watering. Each of these will require differing amounts of water, and you could end up drowning one type of plant while allowing the others to die of thirst! Be certain that your landscape beds are not built in a basin, and that they have good surface drainage, otherwise the plants being used could suffocate from excessive watering. Be sure to clump your plantings according to water needs and water use. Landscaping is more than just making a drawing, and choosing plants, it involves the proper placement of the plants to achieve the best combination of growing conditions.

Plant and bed placement tips

This tip will help you to save money, and “green” up your homes pest control program: When designing landscape beds, leave yourself a foot or more of space between the plants and the home. Do the same with bark mulch. That extra foot of space between your walls and plants can mean the difference between a full blown insect insurgency, and a healthy symbiotic relation between the great outdoors and the insect and mold free comfort of your indoor living space.

Pests use plants and bark mulch as a covered highway onto and into your home. The further you can keep these 2 elements from your exterior walls the better. You would probably be surprised at the difference just a few inches of space can make when it comes to insects. Instead of using the mulch between the plants and the foundation, try digging a trench, and adding coarse sand with pebbles on top. Tunneling insects like termites will find the sand and pebbles impossible to make a tunnel without having it cave in behind them. Other types of insects will see the space as being a cover-less dead end, and  and you will save yourself a lot of money on pest treatments in the long run.

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After spending a little time watching a couple of design shows, and a couple of home makeover shows, and a couple of those real estate and home buying shows, I have become convinced of one thing:

Most modern Americans would buy a house with cardboard boxes as cabinets as long as the cardboard boxes had a granite countertop on top of them!

Granite countertops

It seems a bit unfortunate that the material used on the top of cabinetry has become the tipping point for homeowners who are deciding between a great home with a tile countertop, and an obviously poorer quality home with granite countertops, as though this was the single most important criteria!

I am going to step out on a limb here and say that granite is not the best material for kitchen countertops, and has become a status symbol like wearing a Mercedes Benz hood ornament on a chain once was for hip hop and rap artists. It is just symbol of affluence.

Tile countertops

The numbers and types of tile available today, offer an amazing array colors and textures, impervious to bacteria, attractive, and far more durable than granite. Heck, they are even available in granite if you so choose!

Quartz countertops

The new kid on the block for countertops is quartz. The material is made from ground quartz and resin, and the completed product is hard, resilient, impervious to bacteria, and comes in a wide variety of colors.

Other materials

Even the plastic laminates, and other synthetic materials common a couple of decades ago still have a place and a purpose. There is nothing wrong with them, and the types, styles and colors available, and the fact that they are impervious to bacteria, and relatively low in cost, still make them a good choice.

There is nothing wrong with granite countertops, but they are probably not the best material on the market, and definitely not the best criteria for choosing a home!

Comments: Feel free to disagree and let us know why in the comment section.

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Answer:

Yes, too many weeds can spoil your favorite fishing hole. I know bass and many other game fish like cover, but too much cover makes it difficult to get a lure through to them, and may make it difficult for them to forage. The result can be skinny fish that you can’t get to anyway!

Often excessive vegetation can cause problems for fish, and for fishing. It can in some cases take oxygen from the water. At times plants take in carbon dioxide, and exhale oxygen, but on still evenings, the opposite can happen. Too much vegetation can make it hard for foraging fish like bass to get to their prey, and there are about a dozen other reasons.

The problem could be excessive fertility, or the exact opposite. Too much fertility will cause excessive plant growth, ponds and lakes that receive a lot of runoff from farms, ranches, dairies, or even lawns can have this problem. Too little fertility will prevent algae bloom, and allow the water to become so clear that the sunlight reaches the bottom where most aquatic plants start. In most cases, fertility and water depth are the keys to bringing the lake into balance.

On another front, if you travel from lake to lake to fish, there are some nasty exotic weeds out there that can reproduce themselves from fragments, so please clean your boat, trailer, and other gear before moving on to the next fishing hole. Some of these invaders can reproduce under almost any condition, and could close down your favorite fishing spot if they get a start. Taking care to clean up is good for all of us.

For more details on pond and lake management see:

Lake management

Lake advice

Help! My pond is covered in algae (pond scum)! What can I do?

Answer:

This is a pretty common problem, and with the numbers of e mails we have been getting on the subject, we thought we would respond on the blog. Please read the last part, it is the most important part.

Algae or pond scum treatment

The best method for treating algae is to use a combination of  diquat and a  liquid copper product at a rate of about a gallon per acre (depending on the product) of each. If the coverage is heavy, the treatment should be limited to about 1/3 of the area, giving the first treatment long enough to work and long enough for the algae to drop and degrade before making a second application. If you don’t allow the waiting period, you could kill fish due to lack of oxygen caused by decomposing algae.

Follow the label directions!

Follow the label directions carefully, because the label is the law, and following the directions will give the best results.

Preventing future problems:The most important part

The most important thing to do, is after the algae is gone, something should be done to prevent further problems. This link should help: http://homeandgardenpress.com/category/lake-management/ there is a lot of information on pond and lake management there and it will make the job easier.

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Part one in our pest prevention series.

The bugs and rodents you find inside your home come from somewhere. Have you ever given any thought as to where that “somewhere” might be? Well, you should! Bugs and rodents don’t just spontaneously appear in your home. They are not magical, they are not mysterious, they are not from another planet. Understanding where bugs mice and rats come from, and what they want is the key to dealing with them.

Where bugs and rodents come from

Bugs and rodents exist in the wide open spaces of the great outdoors, and they do pretty well out there, but they are like human beings in this way, they are always looking to upgrade. They like the great outdoors, but they also like living with you! That is, they like living with you, as long as you provide them with what they want, and need to survive.

Bug and rodent philosophy

Philosophically speaking, a variety of positions exist as to why bugs are here to begin with. Those who hold to an evolutionary viewpoint say that insects and rodents are just a part of the natural chain of evolution. Those of a biblical persuasion believe that insects and rodents are the result of the fallen nature of our world, and those of eastern religions have a variety of takes on them, often seeing them as being just as important as human life.

No matter how you slice it, insects and rodents can be a problem, and to deal with them, you don’t have to violate the tenants of any philosophical position of which I am aware. Simply prevent them!

If insects and rodents come from outdoors, and you as a homeowner choose to keep them there, it is important to determine what you have that makes your home a good target for them.

What bugs and rodents want

What they seek is shelter and food. Of course they do need a way to get inside. What we want to do is determine what it is on your property that allows a large enough population of insects to accumulate, offers them cover and close enough proximity to stage an invasion of your house, and a pathway into your home, and what you have inside that is the reason why they are seeking to get inside. Once we do this, and eliminate the things that allow the population to grow, have cover, have a reason to want to get inside, and a way to do it, then we will drastically decrease the numbers of pest actually inside your home, without having to resort to the over use of pesticides, or violate the tenants of your bug and rodent philosophy.

We will be discussing the details of preventing bugs and rodents, like clearing and cleaning your property, good lawn care tactics for pest control, and how the landscape you have effects your pest control effort in the next few posts. If you have questions or comments, p;ease feel free to use our convenient comment box. We would love to hear from you!

See part two in our pest prevention series: Pest Control Brush Weeds Rubble Clean Up

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Storage

Storage has always been a necessary part of life, and this necessity has led to many innovations, including larger living quarters with indoor storage, off site storage, and backyard storage or outdoor storage buildings.

Home or public storage

With our increasingly mobile society, extra storage has become more important than ever, and with so much downsizing due to economic difficulty, indoor storage has become less of an option. This leaves either storage off site, which has the downside of being some distance from the home, which requires travel time and expense, and rental cost, or the use of sheds and outdoor storage buildings.

Garden sheds

Garden sheds can make life a lot more convenient, while protecting your lawn and garden equipment and other items that might otherwise end up taking up the space in your garage that your car should occupy.

Storage building uses

There are any other advantages to owning your own storage shed, and there are many ways to use them to solve other problems around the home and workplace, and many opportunities to improve the families lifestyle. Utility buildings like storage sheds can serve many other purposes like exercise rooms, workshops, office space, game rooms, and business storage for those of us who work at home.

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Metal Garages

Traditional garages are built into, or onto a home. They rarely serve the purpose for which they were originally intended. Most garages are being used for storage, or extra rooms of some kind, and in many ways, this is for the best. Think about it: How smart is it to park a fossil fuel powered, internal combustion engine vehicle inside your home?

Unconnected metal garages

Today a lot of people are opting for an unconnected garage a short distance from the family home, and that is often a metal garage. Metal garages can be created in a lot of shapes and sizes, and the simplest of them can be very affordable, while the more complex metal garages are, at worst, a great value.

Steel garages the metal of choice

The metal of choice for a garage, a carport, or a shop is steel. Galvanized steel frames, and galvanized, painted sheet metal will last for many years, and provide attractive, durable service.

Metal garage uses

The uses for such steel garages or shops are nearly endless. Workshops, offices, storage, and even housing is not out of the question. Garage type metal buildings are being built as homes, and as the basis for stores of every type throughout the country.

Indeed, many home owners are replacing composition shingle roofs with steel roofing when it is time for a change. It is only a matter of time before builders and homeowners alike extend the steel siding to the rest of the home.

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