How-To

HOMETIME, How-To Putter Shed - Finishing

Hometime — We chose cedar shingles for a more rustic look. Of course these are more expensive than an asphalt shingle, but we were only covering about hundred square feet of roof and we used lower grade of cedar to keep the cost down. They ended up costing ...More…

Wood siding how-to -- Part B -- Corner Details

Old House Web — Siding Details: A, Miter corner; B, metal corners; C, corner boards. The method of finishing wood siding or other materials at exterior corners is often influenced by the overall design of the house. A mitered corner effect on horizontal siding ...More…

Wood siding how-to -- Part A -- Installing bevel siding

Old House Web — The minimum lap for bevel siding should not be less than 1 inch. The average exposure distance is usually determined by the distance from the underside of the window sill to the top of the drip cap (See figure A). From the standpoint of weather ...More…

Wood siding how-to -- Intro

Old House Web — One of the important factors in successful performance of various siding materials is the type of fastener used. Nails are the most common of these, and it is poor economy indeed to use them sparingly. Corrosion-resistant nails, galvanized or ...More…

How-To: Venting the Bathroom

Old House Web — You could certainly install two separate fans and ducts -- one for each bathroom -- but your situation seems ideal for a single, remote fan. Standard fans combine a motor, grill and often a light in a box mounted in the ceiling. They are designed ...More…

How-To Project: Making a Water Garden

National Gardening Association — Add two bunches of submerged plants, one floating plant, and one or two marsh plants per square yard of water surface to keep algae in check. Plants should cover 60 to 70 percent of the surface. Remove debris regularly, and replace water lost to ...More…

How-To Project: Drying Flowers

National Gardening Association — You don't need a field full of flowers to have enough for drying. Just three or four plants of each type will yield enough stems for several dried arrangements. Harvest more flowers than you need. Many preserved flowers are fragile, and you will ...More…

How-To Project: Forcing Paper White Narcissus

National Gardening Association — The process of forcing paper white narcissus is a blend of flower arranging and indoor gardening, and simpler than either. Forced paper whites spend all their energy in growth and bloom, and can be discarded when the blossoms fade, like a ...More…

How-To Project: Forcing Tulips Indoors

National Gardening Association — Once tulips have finished flowering, you can throw them into the compost or cut back the flowering stem and let the leaves die back naturally. To prevent the potting mix from leaching out the drainage hole when watering the container, place a ...More…

How-To Project: Calculating the Number of Bulbs To Buy

National Gardening Association — For a longer show, you can plant two types of bulbs on top of each other in the same bed. Plant smaller bulbs such as crocus on top of larger bulbs such as tulips. Dig the bed to the depth of the larger bulbs. Plant and cover these with a thin ...More…

How-To Project: Combining Tulips with Annuals and Perennials

National Gardening Association — Florists Buy beautiful fresh flowers, hand arranged bouquets from Teleflora Although tulips look great massed in planting beds, they look even better when combined with other bulbs, annual and perennial flowers, or shrubs. To get the best ...More…

How-To Project: Maintaining Container Gardens

National Gardening Association — These simple maintenance tasks keep your patio planters and window boxes looking their best throughout the growing season and help cold-climate gardeners prepare for winter. Closely spaced plants packed into a small volume of soil need watering ...More…