Invitations

I have a full schedule this month; I have so many invitations and I think I may have to decline some of them. Now I just have to decide which invitations to turn down, I hope they’ll understand. There are just not enough hours in a day for me and I’m just talking about my social life! Wait till I tell you about my work life which is even more hectic.

Cheap plants

The cheapest and best way to buy plants is to purchase them in small pots known as ‘tubes’. Tubes are long and thin, with ridges running down the sides to encourage the roots of the plant to grow downwards, rather than coiling around the sides. Although tubestock is small compared to plants sold in say, 200mm or 8” pots, the plants not only establish more quickly but they grow more vigorously for their entire lives.

OxyElite Pro review

Yes I know you are quite sick of so call magic pills that promise to loose weighs but you should seriously have a read on the oxyelite pro review. I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised, most of my friends have tried it and swear by it so it can’t be wrong. I know I’ll be getting some of it today, how about you?

Tips for growing vegetables

• Vegetables need full sun and shelter from winds - a north-facing situation is best with at least six hours direct sun, including morning sun.
• Vegetables should be grown rapidly for best flavour - this is achieved with regular, usually daily watering, and regular applications of liquid food (every fortnight).
• Vegetables need a well-drained soil, with a loose, crumbly structure - digging well-rotted manure in to a spade's depth before planting will improve the structure of any soil.
• Use additional fertiliser to encourage good growth - leaf vegetables need fertilisers that are high in nitrogen, while fruit and root vegetables need a good supply of phosphorus.
• Spread your harvest - make repeated plantings (or sowings if growing from seed) every few weeks, also eat some vegetables when they are small and succulent, but leave others in the ground to develop further.
• Protect your vegetables from snails and slugs by using snail baits - but take care as snail baits are toxic to pets, especially dogs and native animals (follow the directions on the packet). Other methods of snail control include collecting and squashing, and traps such as beer traps or barriers.

MD Clear review

I’m always on a look out for new acne treatments and one that caught my eyes recently is md clear. I reckon this product is worth having a try out because I’ve heard lots of great feedback on it. I’m reading up on another md clear review now and it looks like another winner. Okay, time to get my hands on some of these and try it for myself.

Fresh Vegies

Everyone knows that vegetables are good for you. To gain full nutritional benefits from vegetables it is important that they are eaten when they are as fresh as possible. Vitamin content is highest in raw vegetables or those that are cooked so as to preserve their vitamins.

The best way to have fresh vegetables is to grow your own to pick fresh each day. If you buy vegetables from a greengrocer or supermarket, it is important to know how to choose the freshest vegetables available and how to store them to keep them fresh. Here are Rosemary's tips for choosing the freshest vegetables: Buy from a greengrocer or supermarket with a good turn over. Select vegetables which look, feel and smell fresh. If you can bend a carrot it will have lost most of its goodness. Spinach or other greens which are wilted have lost most of their water soluble vitamins B and C. Buy small amounts often (so they keep fresh) and vary the way you serve them.

Inpatient rehab treatment centers

I’m really worried for my friend; his drinking is getting worse and I worry he’ll hit rock bottom soon. There are more fighting between him and his partner and sooner rather than later she’s going to leave him. He needs help and fast. I’m looking at some inpatient rehab treatment centers so he can get help. I can’t stand by and watch him slip away like this.

Archerfish

The Australian native Archerfish (Toxotes jaculator) shoots strong jets of water to bring down insects and other small prey resting on overhanging vegetation. It does this by pushing its tongue against a groove on the roof of its mouth to form a tube. It then snaps its gill covers shut, forcing out a powerful spurt of water. The jets of water reach up to 3m (10'), but the Archerfish is only accurate to about 1.5m (5'). This fish has good binocular vision with large eyes located close to its mouth, allowing it to judge distances and focus well. It learns to correct for refraction between the water and the air, usually shooting from directly below the target where there is the least amount of distortion. When the insect falls into the water the Archerfish is waiting to gobble it up.

Motorhome repair

Last year we bought a used motorhome for our holidays. We drove down the west coast and had a wonderful time until the motorhome broke down. Now we know why we bought it at such a low price. Turns out it needed so many repairs and we were out in the middle of nowhere when it broke down and there was not a single motorhome repair shop around. We learned our lesson.

Siamese Fighting Fish

The Siamese Fighting Fish is native to the South-East Asian region of Thailand (formerly Siam), Cambodia and Vietnam. It survives in the wild anywhere where still water lies, such as rice paddies, stagnant ponds and road-side drains.

The species attracted its name because of the aggressive nature of the males towards each other. Because the fish are common to very small bodies of water, even water-filled buffalo hoofprints, males must fiercely protect their territory, or lose their breeding ground to a stronger male.

Treasure metal detectors

I heard about people going out to the old gold fields in the hope of striking it rich with their metal detectors. That’s why I also wanted to join in the treasure hunt but first I’ll have to get myself a good metal detector. I did some research on these equipments and it seems like the treasure metal detectors are the most popular choice in the market. Well if most people are happy with them I think I won’t go wrong with them.

Orchids

When people talk about orchids they usually mean the common cymbidium orchid, which is often used in corsages and flower arrangements. However, there are over 20,000 species of orchids, and they make up the largest of all the plant families. Many are epiphytes (ie they live on other plants but do not parasitise those plants), others live on rocks, on the ground or even underground. Epiphytes usually grow from a creeping root stock, and produce thickened stems called pseudobulbs to store their moisture and food. When it comes to growing requirements, orchids vary tremendously.

Back acne treatment

It is bad enough to get acne on your face but worse if you get them on your back! With face acne I can keep my face clean to prevent acne from getting worse but what do I do with my back acne? Is there some sort of back acne treatment that I can use? And even if there is, how do I reach my back? I’m going to need someone to help me every time I treat my back acne!

Autumn jobs

Autumn is a great time to do garden improvement and maintenance, for example constructing a pathway or a pergola, sharpening your tools, improving your soil or mulching the garden beds. A little time spent on jobs now will help your garden power away in the spring.

Strawberries planted now will produce fruit in October and November. Put some mulch around the base of a citrus tree, making sure not to allow any of the mulch to touch the trunk. Some citrus trees, such as Emperor mandarins, bear so heavily that the branches bend over with the weight of the crop. When this happens it is necessary to do some emergency thinning to prevent the branches snapping under the strain. Ideally, the best time to prune citrus is after the crop is harvested.

Two step stool

It is convenient to have a small step ladder inside the house for occasional uses when you need to get to something placed up high. I have a decent size ladder in the garage but that wouldn’t be good for inside the house. What we need is a two step stool that can be used as a stool when not being used as a small step.

Adding Organic Matter to Soil

The worst problem facing gardeners in Australia today is that when soils dry out, they can become water repellent, or hydrophobic. When this happens, water just runs off instead of soaking into the soil.

Hydrophobia usually occurs in sandy soils and often it is caused by mulches. When uncomposted mulch sits on the surface of the ground, waxy, oily material leaves that mulch as it breaks down and coats each individual grain in the soil. When the soil dries out and you try to rewet it, the waxy, oily coating on the grains won't let the water back in and the soil stays dry.

If you took that same mulch and put it into a compost heap, micro-organisms such as bacteria and fungi would break down the waxy and oily material along with the organic matter. As well, the remnants of organic matter that you get at the end of composting actually aid the soil to form tiny little cracks that allow water to penetrate - drying out is never really an issue and the soil always rewets. So organic material used as a mulch causes the problem, but solves the problem when used as a compost.

Cigars

I’m not one to smoke cigars but once in a while I might have a go with friends just for celebrations like someone’s having a baby or getting married. Mind you I don’t inhale, just puffing away blowing smoke. Some people don’t like the smell but I like the aroma of a good cigar however my wife will refuse to kiss me afterwards!

Growing Better Pot Plants

Growing a beautiful plant in a pot is a satisfying experience, and plants continue giving joy year after year, especially as they can be moved indoors for brief periods when flowering. However, many pot plants tend to become drab and do not add anything to their environment. There are however a few tricks to growing really good plants in pots.

Watering pot plants can be difficult, as the water often is not absorbed below the surface. A wetting agent acts to open up the potting mix and allows water to be fully absorbed. An experiment conducted with three pot plants with standard potting mix which had typically dried out, indicates the importance of a good wetting agent.

Men's gifts under $20

So what do you give a man who’s got everything? Small things count so get him small but make it personal and I’m sure you can get all kinds of men's gift ideas under $20 or around there. It is not the price of the gifts that matters, it’s the thought and how personal you make the gifts to be. So don’t tell me you don’t have any idea what to get, there’s always something you can think of that will be appropriate.

Carnivorous plants

The world is full of weird and bizarre plants, but the most strange and bizarre would have to be the carnivorous plants. It's amazing to think of plants trapping living creatures, and slowly digesting them. If you saw the movie "The Day of the Triffids" you probably thought the idea of plants eating all the humans and taking over the world was a bit far fetched. Well, think again - maybe it wasn't all that far from reality.