Thursday, November 11, 2010

Choosing the Best Rake for the Job




by Kathleen Hennessy

For most homeowners taking out a rake usually means there is a carpet of leaves covering your lawn. But that may not be the case. Different types of rakes serve different needs, and choosing the right one may just help the job go a little easier.

For tackling those leaves a steel tine rake is the most durable rake you can buy. It's great for clearing loose or compacted leaves, getting under bushes and around trees. Steel tine rakes can also be used as light de-thatching tools. If you're looking for a lightweight rake, poly or plastic rakes are a good choice. They're easy to handle and good for raking leaves, grass and other loose materials. Combination rakes that are made with both poly and steel can incorporate the best features of both types.

If you have a lot of tight spaces such as shrubs, fences or landscaping to maneuver around, a shrub rake can do the trick. The smaller, more compact size makes it perfect for getting around and under tight spaces.

For landscaping chores there are a number of different rakes to help out. The most basic is the bow rake. Bow rakes are great for gardening, moving soil and removing debris.

A thatch rake is the manual tool for removing thatch from your lawn. Use one side for loosening the soil. Flip the rake over to lift up and remove thatch.

Level head rakes are great for leveling gravel and grading soft soil. These rakes feature widely spaced tines and tough steel construction, so they're ready to take on the big jobs. Similar to the level head rake, the aluminum landscape rake is a lightweight tool for smoothing soil, gravel and other landscape materials. Rounded teeth on the landscape rake make it perfect for use in areas where lawns or landscapes have already been established.

With so many choices, it's easy to find the right tool for the job.

Kathleen Hennessy has been writing about home and garden topics for more than eight years. An avid gardener, and weekend home-improver, she and her family make their home in the Midwest.

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

Grass cutting: Bring in new machine



2010/11/10
LIONG KAM CHONG, Seremban, Negri Sembilan
letters@nst.com.my

Grass cutting: Bring in new machine

WE often read letters complaining about the lackadaisical work by municipal council workers charged with cutting grass by the roadside and in playgrounds in housing estates.

Grass is cut but is neither swept nor collected. It is untidy and most unsightly.

Sometimes, the council reacts to complaints. Workers are sent to sweep and collect the cut grass. But this is rare; it is the exception rather than the norm. Soon, it is back to the same old practice.


As residents of housing estates, are we supposed to make a complaint every time grass is cut before action is taken?

Some grass-cutting jobs are outsourced. And I believe it is in the contract that the cut grass has to be swept, collected and disposed of neatly. Why is this not adhered to?

It may even be informative to analyse this "grass-cutting, sweeping and collecting" job.


Let me make it clear from the outset that I respect all manual workers who are efficient and effective. And I appreciate that these workers have to labour and sweat much to get the work done.

The worker uses a shoulder-mounted grass-cutting machine. Once the motor is switched on, all he needs to do is to swing the handle holding the rotating blade to cut the overgrown grass.

Just swinging the blade handle is easy work. There is no plucking, ploughing or cutting by hands to be done. The worker's hands are not even dirtied.


Perhaps, this is why this part of the job is done satisfactorily.

Not so for sweeping and collecting the cut grass. Because the cutting blade rotates at high speed, cut grass usually flies off some distance onto the road or into the roadside drains. To sweep and collect this cut grass, a rake, shovel, scoop or broom may have to be used.

The worker has no machine to help out in this task. Also, the grass swept and collected has to be put into plastic bags before it can be disposed of.

This has to be done by hand. I guess this is the part of the job the workers don't like to do and have not been doing faithfully. It dirties their hands and it is hard and tedious work.


But is there a solution? During a recent trip to Sydney, I saw workers cutting grass by the roadside in a suburban housing estate. They used a four-wheel grass-cutting machine with a collection function. It cut, swept and collected the grass; much like a mechanical combine harvester.

It was neat. I believe the workers there also enjoy their work because much of the work is done by machine. They are just driving the machine. Their hands are clean, too. Of course, the road kerbs and road shoulders on which grass is grown have been designed and maintained to suit this grass-cutting machine.

New housing estates in Malaysia can start building according to the required specifications and older housing estates can carry out such modifications later.

When these are ready, the local authorities can bring in these special grass-cutting machines with the collection function.


Read more: Grass cutting: Bring in new machine http://www.nst.com.my/nst/articles/24grass/Article/#ixzz14rvL1OeJ

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

Zero Waste






Zoos are turning the droppings of animals into compost


By MARC BENJAMIN


Fresno Chaffee Zoo’s waste is no longer going to waste. Zoo officials have embarked on a new project to cart dung from elephants and other vegetable-eating animals to a corner of the zoo’s service yard. The plan is to water, turn and age the scat for several weeks until it turns into compost and can be used for landscaping.

In addition to saving on hauling and composting costs, Chaffee Zoo in Fresno, California, might start marketing its end product later this year, officials said.

“With all the talk we do about the environment, we want to practice what we preach,” said Steve Feldman, spokesman for the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. “More and more zoos are starting to recognize and use this valuable resource.”

Tucson’s Reid Park Zoo donates some of its composted waste to a farm operated by a community food bank, where produce is grown and then sold at local farmers markets, said Jed Dodds, education co-ordinator for Tucson Zoo.

At the zoo in Columbia, South Carolina, manure entrepreneurs are selling “comPOOst;” in Seattle’s Woodland Park Zoo, it’s known as “Zoo Doo”.

John Davis, curator of mammals and manager pf the comPOOst operation in Columbia’s Riverbanks Zoo, said the soil additive is helping keep the landscaping lush. And purchasers also say good things.

“We have return customers who say they are pleased with how it’s working,” Davis said. “But, I can’t say it’s that much better than (other) compost.”

The money earned through sales pays for conservation programs that Riverbanks Zoo participates in around the world, Davis said.

Woodland Park Zoo sells its Zoo Doo to the public by the truckload or in containers. There are 28 different types of animals that contribute to the zoo’s programme, said Dan Corum, the zoo’s self-proclaimed curator of “endangered faeces.”

Corum said the zoo earns about US$15,000 (RM46,500) from Zoo Doo sales annually and also saves about US$60,000 (RM186,000) by not having to send millions of tones of waste to the landfill each year.

One of the nation’s longest-running composting projects is at the North Carolina Zoo in Asheboro. Over 13 years, the zoo has saved US$1.5mil (RM4.65mil) in landfill and landscaping costs, said Gin Wall, curator of horticulture.

“We use every bit we can get.” Wall said. “It has more than paid for itself.”

Chaffee Zoo employees on doo-doo duty are mixing elephant dung with leftover straw, landscape clippings and fruit and vegetables that can’t be used as feed. Eventually, they’ll also use dropping from the zoo’s zebras, giraffes and addax to create the compost material.

Only herbivore eliminations are used; the fecal material from carnivores can contain parasites, but samples also are being taken to ensure that parasites haven’t been left behind by herbivores, said Scott Barton, Fresno Chaffee Zoo director.

Fresno Chaffee Zoo’s two elephants produce about 55 tonnes of stool annually. All the zoo’s waste hauling is paid for by the city of Fresno. If all the zoo’s elephant dung is used in composting, the city would save about US$11,000 (RM34,100) in disposal costs, said Ann Kloose, city of Fresno public utilities spokeswoman.

To become a usable soil additive, the waste is built into windrows; zoo employees must turn, water and take its temperature for weeks, said Greg Gorby, the zoo’s horticulture manager.

Becky Thompson, a local gardener participating in the Fresno zoo’s project, said that for the poop to compost properly, the temperature must remain between 49° and 60°C.

“If it gets too hot, it will kill the bacteria, and if it gets too cold, the bacteria slows down,” she said.

If the pile rises to 71°C or more, it could spontaneously combust, which is why the zoo is acquiring a thermometer to measure internal temperature of its manure piles.

The key to the composting process is the activity of microbial bacteria, which need water, food and a steady diet of fecal material, Seattle’s Corum said.

The corner of the yard where the brown matter is stored at Chaffee isn’t stinky and has not attracted large number of flies.

Zoo poop from plant-eating animals typically is less odoriferous, Corum said.

“We are only working with herbivore manure, which smells notably less than, say the household cat box or the steamer the neighbor’s dog leaves on the parking strip,” he said. “Odour is not an issue with well-managed compost piles. Finished quality compost does smell, in a good way, like forest duff.”

The Fresno Bee/ McClatchy- Tribune Information

Tuesday, September 28, 2010

Planting in Pots




by RobinMcaf

Quite a few people have been asking in the Forums asked about planting herbs and vegetables in containers - here is my advice:

Containers
Herbs and certain vegetables thrive in containers. Feel free to experiment with the material. Mediterranean terracotta is beautiful but porous and dries out quickly. Use plastic pots, window boxes, buckets, or even baths (as in the picture above). Remember that the smaller the pot, the more you will need to water and the quicker the root will dry out so buy the biggest that you can afford within the space that you have. I have always found Sage to be unhappy in small containers so I would always give this herb a larger pot (at least 8 litres).

Soil

Make sure your container has drainage holes. If it doesn't, drill your own and have at least three holes, each with a 80mm diameter. Place a piece of broken terracotta or a stone over the hole to stop the soil running through or the hole getting blocked. I use John Innes Potting Compost but you can buy cheaper multi-purpose composts with a little John Innes added. John Innes tends to retain moisture more effectively than some standard multi-purpose composts.

Aspect
Most herbs and vegetables thrive in the sun. However there are some herbs and vegetables, which will tolerate partial shade. Spinach and mint are invaluable exceptions.

Top ten herbs and vegetables for containers

Cherry tomatoes. You will need full sun and plenty of food and water, but cherry tomatoes will thrive in containers. Planting with basil will improve the flavour. Feed regularly with a liquid tomato feed.

Basil. Plant with tomatoes, on it's own or in a mixed herb container. Basil is annual but will last the summer and taste delicious with your tomatoes. Basil is also said to repel flies and mosquitos. You can even just buy a pot from the supermarket and keep it inside on the windowsill close to hand.

Wild rocket. Will take partial shade and is extremely low maintenance. Fresh rocket tastes peppery and potent and the flavour will leave it's supermarket packet rivals on the shelf.

Mint. Peppermint makes a delicious fresh tea, which always impresses guests. It is also a valuable companion for cooking, particularly with potatoes. Never combine mint with other plants. It has shallow creeping roots and will take over. Keep it self-contained.

Rosemary. Great in a mixed herb arrangement and useful for cooking with meat and vegetables. I like the creeping variety Rosmarinus officinalis Prostratus Group which will curl over the edge of your containers.

Chives. Chives keep aphids away and the purple flowerheads are a real treat in early summer salads – the garlic flavour tinged with sweet nectar. The leaves are more commonly used.

Parsley. Needs little explanation. An extremely popular biennial herb that is used in a variety of dishes. It does like rich soil, to be kept moist and fed regularly. When you feed your tomatoes don't forget your parsley too.

Spinach. The final three plants can be picked when they're young and will keep cropping if you keep picking, hence the title ‘cut and come again'. Perpetual spinach is delicious cooked or raw and suitable for partial shade.

Lettuce. Lettuce prefers partial shade and a cool spot and is also happy grown in small containers.

Pak Choi. This Chinese cabbage is my final ‘cut and come again' option. It has a good strong flavour and will last into the winter months. Pak choi has shallow roots and needs little watering – ideal for container gardening.

Useful links

http://www.jekkasherbfarm.com/plants.asp

A wonderful resource where you can buy organic herbs, their seeds and learn more about the wealth of varieties available.

http://www.jamieoliver.com/gardening/article.php?id=157

Monday, September 20, 2010

Save Mother Earth!




One of the ways to reduce your carbon footprint is by planting trees. Trees absorb carbon dioxide to produce oxygen and wood.

By helping to plant tree you will be helping to:

-Offset CO2 emissions
-Provide wildlife habitats

The amount of carbon, a tree will absorb depends on many factors;

-amount of room it has to grow
-type of tree
-location where the tree is planted


So,let's start planting!!

Friday, September 17, 2010

We Are Hiring!




BjGardeners.com is growing at a rapid pace. We are now looking for great people to join our team.

(1) Gardeners

(2) Garden Assistants

(3) Sales Executives

BjGardeners.com offers a competitive salary and excellent benefits package including medical, EPF, and SOCSO.

Please click on the links for more information.

Saturday, September 11, 2010

Selamat Hari Raya, Maaf Zahir dan Batin

BjGardeners.com wishes all Muslims a Selamat Hari Raya.