Online Features
Lawn & Garden
Grow beautiful landscapes with less water
Hot and dry weather provides reason enough to think about simple ways to save water while still enjoying beautiful yards and gardens. You may even find that your efforts to be water smart may improve the health and appearance of your plants.
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Hot ideas for keeping your outdoor spaces cooler this summer
As temperatures climb, many of us retreat indoors, leaving our outdoor living spaces vacant until fall. However, it is possible to enjoy being outside throughout the sultry months if you take a few steps to keep your outdoor living spaces as cool as possible. Here are a few ideas to help you keep your cool outdoors this ...
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Getting roots wet without waste
Water is one of the most important and precious natural resources necessary for garden and lawn health. Now that planting is in full swing, getting plants established while using water wisely is essential for a successful growing season.
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When parties move outdoors, try these simple ideas
Warm weather and outdoor entertaining go hand in hand. Sit back and relax this summer with family, friends and great food at your next backyard barbecue. No matter who or how many guests, you'll want to create a memorable gathering that keeps people talking. Plan your next summer celebration with these no-fuss party ideas.
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Extend summer fun with expert outdoor lighting tips
From neighborhood picnics to kids' play time, summer means outside time. Much of that activity occurs during longer daylight hours, but darkness is also a great time to enjoy warm-weather days. How can you create an environment that extends the fun of summer past sunset?
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Tabletop gardens are edible centerpieces
Daydreams of fresh produce used in delicious sauces, salads and stir fries have many drawing garden plot plans and even starting seeds for future transplanting. Tabletop gardens are a fun and decorative way to expand into new planting opportunities.
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Invest in family-healthy diets by growing half your plate
This summer, consider adapting your family's eating habits to mimic the MyPlate graphic developed by the United States Department of Agriculture. Although most on-the-go families don't eat that many fruits and vegetables, it's easy to do, especially if you plant a garden and buy from local farmers markets.
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Ten secrets for grilling perfection
From the way the charcoal briquettes are arranged to finding that perfect set of tongs, every home grilling expert has his or her secrets. For many, grilling goes beyond just a practical warm-weather cooking method and it becomes more of an art form.
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Upgrade your outdoor space and increase value of your home
Whether you are looking for a way to increase the marketability of your home, or simply looking for a way to make your outdoor space more enjoyable, a deck remodel adds living space to your home and value to your house. And if you start your project now, you'll have plenty of time to enjoy it during the warmer months.
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Add tasty edible plants to your landscape
Window boxes overflowing with blooms, decorative pots lining the driveway with striking colors, and even a flowering vine climbing up the mailbox - the growing season have arrived, and it is time to decorate the landscape.
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By David Schwartz PHOENIX (Reuters) - The foreman of an Arizona jury that deadlocked over whether Jodi Arias should be put to death for murdering her ex-boyfriend believes she was mentally abused, but said on Friday that had not been enough to excuse her crime. Arias, a former waitress from California, was found guilty this month of murdering Travis Alexander, whose body was found slumped in the shower of his Phoenix-area home in June 2008. He had been stabbed 27 times, had his throat slashed and been shot in the face. ...
By Joanne von Alroth SPRINGFIELD, Illinois (Reuters) - The Illinois House of Representatives on Friday voted overwhelmingly to allow residents to carry concealed guns, taking the state one step closer to joining all others in allowing some form of carrying guns in public. Illinois is the only state in the nation to ban most people from carrying a concealed gun outside the home. Lawmakers acted on Friday after a federal appeals court in January struck down the ban, saying it violated the right to bear arms enshrined in the U.S. Constitution. ...