Growing
Why the shrub that thrived at your old house is dying at this one
Counting hours of direct sun and filling a hole with water tells you more about what will grow than any catalog description. Here is the survey and what to do with it.
How to measure your own fuel economy and actually change it
What a dog or cat really costs across a whole life
How to settle a new cat or dog into your home
Taking a dog or cat on a long road trip
The bad version of this trip is decided long before the trip. The carrier lives in a closet and comes out twice a year, both times to…
Read the articleNoises, smells and warning lights: sorting the urgent from the annoying
Cars communicate badly but consistently. They repeat the same few signals, in the same conditions, until somebody pays attention. The useful skill for an owner is not…
Read the articleWhat an unheated greenhouse can and cannot do for you in winter
The picture in most people's heads when they price a greenhouse involves picking something in January. The reality of an unheated structure is closer to a few…
Read the articleSix things to look at once a month, and how to look at them properly
Expensive repairs almost always send a postcard first. A coolant level that is a little lower each month. A tire that needs air more often than the…
Read the articleStarting seeds indoors: count backward from your last frost date
Seed catalogs arrive in January, which is the cruellest possible timing. By the first week of February most of us have sown something, and by the middle…
Read the articleCompost troubleshooting: what the smell, the heat and the squeeze test tell you
A compost heap that has stopped working looks exactly like a compost heap that is working slowly. Both are a pile of stuff in the corner of…
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