• Grab a handful of your garden soil. If you can form it into a ball, the soil is too wet for planting. (Chances are the seeds will rot.) If it crumbles through your fingers, it’s ready for planting.
• Here’s another soil test. Make a ball of soil and drop it. If the ball crumbles, your garden is ready for seeds. If it holds its shape or breaks into two clumps, it’s still too wet for planting.
• You can also step into the garden and then step back and look at the footprint you’ve left in the soil. If it’s shiny, then there’s too much water near the soil’s surface to dig and plant. If it’s dull, then excess water has drained away and it’s time to plant.
• Old farmers had an even easier guideline: When the weeds start to grow in your garden, it’s time to plant your hardy vegetables..

As soon as the soil is ready for planting, stir it well and let it sit for several days. Then top-dress it with compost or well-rotted manure and get to work.

You’ve emptied out drawers and swept away clutter. Now is the time to scrub things until they shine.

Unfortunately, the chemicals found in conventional cleaning products can be more of a problem than the dirt they’re intended to clean, and the disposable paper towels so many of us use aren’t so earth-friendly either.

There are loads of good green products available these days, but it’s also easy to make your own.

Basic Supplies You’ll Need for DIY Green Cleaners

• White vinegar (sold in the cooking section of most supermarkets)
• Baking soda
• Olive oil
• Borax (sold in a box in the laundry aisle)
• Liquid castile soap (like Dr. Bronner’s brand, found in most natural foods stores)
• Essential oils (found in natural foods stores, usually in the cosmetics section)
• Microfiber cleaning cloths or better yet, rags made from discarded clothes and towels
• Newspaper

Green Cleaning Supply Recipes

• Glass cleaner: Mix 75 mls vinegar with one litre of water in a spray bottle. Spray on glass and wipe clean with old newspaper or a lint-free cloth. Need a stronger glass cleaner? Add a drop or two of the castile soap.
• Countertops and bathroom tile: Make a runny paste of two-parts vinegar and one-part baking soda and four-parts water. Apply with a rag, scour, and rinse well. Prefer a creamier cleanser? Add a tablespoon or two of castile soap. Keeps well in a glass jar if you add a teaspoon of vegetable glycerin.
• Floors: Mix 500 ml of vinegar into a bucket of hot water. Add a few drops of pure peppermint, pine or lemon oil for a pleasant scent, or tea tree oil if you need disinfecting. The smell of vinegar will dissipate quickly and leave behind the scent of the oil.
• Wood furniture: Mix 30 mls of lemon juice and 15 mls olive oil. Apply a small amount to a cloth and rub onto the furniture in long, even strokes. Add a few drops of lemon oil for a longer lasting scent.
• Toilet bowl cleaner: Sprinkle a toilet bowl with baking soda or borax and scrub away.
• All-purpose cleaner: Mix 10 mls borax, 75 mls vinegar, 750 mls water, and a few drops of liquid castile soap. Wipe on with dampened cloth or use a spray bottle. Rinse if desired. An optional cleaner that’s great in the kitchen can be made by collecting the peels of lemons and oranges in a jar, covering them with vinegar and letting it sit for a week. Pour out the liquid and clean away, but be careful of marble counter tops or any other surface that may be sensitive to acid.
• Mold and mildew: Wipe with straight vinegar

It’s that time of year again, where we have to go through every nook and cranny to give our homes a thorough cleaning. These tips will help make the process go by smoothly.

Do the 5-Things Dash

Walk into each room of your home with a box or garbage bag and choose 5 things you can throw out or donate.

Choose duplicates or items that are worn out, out-dated or rarely used.

Eliminate the Expired

Use a plastic bin to gather up all your medication, vitamins, and over-the counter drugs.

While listening to music or relaxing in front of the TV, begin looking at each item’s expiry date.

Have a bag nearby to toss the outdated items.

You can take them to the drug store for safe disposal.

Keep the current medications in the plastic bin, label it and store it in a cool, dark place out of children’s’ reach.

Toss the Toiletries

Just before you brush your teeth every night or jump in the shower every morning, spend just 5 minutes getting rid of hair products that didn’t work, bath products you never used and skin care products that didn’t live up to their promise.

By the end of the week, you’ll have more storage space in your bathroom and easier access to the items you use regularly.

Clear the Counters

Remove anything you don’t need and use daily from your kitchen counters.

Put out an attractive bowl or basket as a catch-all for items that usually end up cluttering the counters.

When the container is full, spend a few minutes going through it and either purge items or place them where they belong.

Once you’ve cleared your counters, you’ll not only have more space for food preparation, you’ll have a more relaxed environment for eating and entertaining.

After the clutter is cleared, reward your efforts by displaying a vase of fresh flowers or a pot of spring bulbs on your counters.

Eliminate Under-Used Utensils

While waiting for water to boil or the oven to preheat, go through your utensil drawer and eliminate items you don’t use.

Go through your kitchen ‘junk drawer’ and see what treasures you’ve forgotten about and what trash you can remove.

Move it Elsewhere

Each time you leave a room, get into the habit of scanning it to see which items don’t belong in the space but somehow migrated there.

If any of those items go in the room you are heading towards, take them with you.

If something belongs upstairs, place it at the bottom of the staircase and take it to the proper room next time you go up; use a wicker basket on the top or bottom of the stairs to make it more convenient.

Get the Family in Gear

Make a game out of de-cluttering by getting the whole family involved.

Give everyone a box, put on some up-beat music, set a timer and see who can discard the most items from their room.

Take the donations to charity and then choose a token prize for the winner and a reward for the entire family.

Do the Season-Swap

As the season changes, so do the items we need to enjoy it.

Now is the time to put away the winter coats, boots and wooly hats and bring out the sun hats, rain jackets and umbrellas.

Be sure to dry-clean all items before storing, even if they look clean. Body oils and not-yet-visible food stains attract moths, especially on wool coats.

If you don’t have an extra closet, a rolling garment rack stored in the basement or spare room is ideal for winter coats during the summer.

Cover the clothes with a clean, cotton bed sheet or use a garment tent to keep them dust-free.

Another option is to store seasonal items in large garment bags, suitcases or under-bed storage bins

Cut Clothing Clutter

Put aside about half an hour to step into your closet and pull out any winter items you didn’t wear this year, while it’s still fresh in your mind.

If you didn’t wear it this winter, you likely won’t wear it next, so let it go now rather than storing it for another year.

Clean-Up Time Saver

Rather than storing all the cleaning supplies in the basement, save steps and time by keeping your most-used cleaners in strategic places throughout the house (kitchen, bathroom, and mudroom), even if this means buying duplicates.

Save space and money by choosing multi-purpose cleaning products and eliminating those you rarely use.

MLS N300001362

FULLY FINISHED BI-LEVEL WITH INLAW POTENTIAL!

Happy New Year!

Can you believe it is 2012 already?

I am looking forward to another exciting year.

If you are thinking of buying or selling, please give me a call and I will be happy to assist you.

Wishing you all the best for 2012!!

Kevin 

905-356-9600 office

905-321-0608 direct

MLS #20149107

FANTASTIC LOCATION!

$142,900

MLS 20149107

FANTASTIC LOCATION FOR THIS 4 BDRM 1.5 STOREY ON A QUIET STREET

MAIN FLOOR FEATURES LARGE LIVING ROOM AREA

EAT IN KITCHEN WITH ACCESS TO NEW REAR DECK

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LIVING ROOM AND ALL BEDROOMS HAVE BEAUTIFUL, ORIGINAL HARDWOOD THROUGHOUT

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