Geoff Ficke asked:
Every business requires a structure that will withstand necessary legal and governmental scrutiny. The choice of how to organize a new enterprise should be made based on the needs and capacity of the owner(s) to maintain and detail the records, history and finances of the business.
Many simple service businesses are set up as a sole proprietorship. The lawn service I utilize is a sole proprietorship. I make out the check in the name of the person providing the service. If I do not spend over $600 per year with any sole proprietor I am not required to fill out tax form 1099 and provide the information to the Internal Revenue Service and the service provider.
The sole proprietorship is the method of structuring most entrepreneurs utilize when starting out in a small-scale commercial venture. This works if services provided are simple, of relatively small transaction size, small inventory required and there is no need for hiring and paying employees. As sales grow and the need to expand becomes apparent the entrepreneur will probably want to consider a more formidable structure.
Here is my advice when considering the business structure best suited for your business, based on present and future needs: consult an attorney. Taxes, investment vehicles, partnering, harvesting profits, incorporation options, and depreciation or only a few of the areas of concern a new business may need to consider and decide upon. A business attorney will have expertise in every area of concern and can construct the most appropriate structure for your business and personal needs. The ability to memorialize in precise legal documents the exact terms, conditions, and responsibilities of all officers and/or share holders in the company is invaluable when disagreements occur.
The importance of written agreements and contracts, signed by all parties to the transaction, cannot be overstated. No one ever enters into a business situation if they are 100% sure it will fail. There is always an air of confident expectation that the business has a good chance of success and will ultimately prosper. Unfortunately, there is always a significant chance that results will be disappointing and disagreements will occur. Make sure that all parties to a deal have a full awareness of the business structure they are participating in.
Oral contracts and agreements have been upheld in courts. However, they are much more difficult to enforce than properly written and executed business contracts. Do not leave important details to chance. Have proper documentation on hand for the protection of all parties.
Partnerships, limited partnerships, limited liability corporations, and corporations are popular vehicles for housing the legal structure of a business. Each has benefits and liabilities, depending on the needs and requirements of the business owner(s).
A partnership can be useful when several parties bring complimentary assets to a venture. One partner might have a patent that represents a commercial opportunity. Another might have investment resources they can bring to bear. Yet another potential partner has specific management experience to contribute.
I have entered into several partnerships in the past with mixed results. If there is a bit of advice I can offer to potential partners before they start it is this: have full agreement on how to harvest profit/loss when success/failure occurs. One partner wants to grow and mature a business, while another wishes to cash out after a few years and this is where the seeds of destruction are sown. Goals, as well as duties and responsibilities must be fully transparent.
The Limited Partnership can be an excellent opportunity for the entrepreneur wishing to put capital to work, but not physically committing to work on a project. Typically a General Partner will manage the business, and the Limited Partners provide the pool of money required in funding a business. Usually units of a Limited Partnership are sold in equal dollar amounts. Be sure and read the deal prospectus carefully and skeptically. In addition, be sure to familiarize yourself with the laws of the state where the business entity will be domiciled as the various states have different laws in this area.
A Limited Liability Corporation is a relatively new corporate structure that offers many of the advantages of the corporation and the benefits of individual tax rates. An attorney will be able to advise if the Limited Liability Corporation is appropriate for your particular needs.
A Corporation is the vehicle that requires the most care and maintenance, as well as providing maximum personal protection. A Corporation is ostensibly a legal entity that acts as if it were a person. Losses are incurred by the legal entity of the Corporation, not by the shareholders of the Corporation. Assets of an incorporated business are property of the Corporation, not the individual shareholders. The owners of stock in the Corporation enjoy benefits based on the number and class status of their shares.
An attorney can advise the best state in which to incorporate based on your anticipated needs. Nevada is the best state for secrecy. Delaware is excellent for transparency and resolution of disputes. Some states are more business friendly from a tax and regulation standpoint and all of these areas must be considered before filing for incorporation.
A Corporation will need to be assigned a Federal Identification Number in order to open a bank account at any financial institution in the United States. The Federal Government utilizes this number when tracking tax, financial and employment data on every incorporated business.
The Articles of Incorporation, annual meeting minutes, a board of directors, corporate fees and filings, state compliance and filing local, state and federal tax returns require a detailed, and potentially costly execution of corporate governance. In addition, stock certificates must be appropriately accounted for and capitalization requirements met and maintained.
Be realistic when choosing the business structure that will offer your fledgling enterprise the most useful features based on present and future needs. Many people file for incorporation, then realize they do not need the hassle of maintaining detailed books and records. Use the business structure that enables you to legally perform every obligation required, while allowing you to be a slave to your business opportunity, not a slave to your corporate structure.
How To Build Auto Lawn Sprinklers
Every business requires a structure that will withstand necessary legal and governmental scrutiny. The choice of how to organize a new enterprise should be made based on the needs and capacity of the owner(s) to maintain and detail the records, history and finances of the business.
Many simple service businesses are set up as a sole proprietorship. The lawn service I utilize is a sole proprietorship. I make out the check in the name of the person providing the service. If I do not spend over $600 per year with any sole proprietor I am not required to fill out tax form 1099 and provide the information to the Internal Revenue Service and the service provider.
The sole proprietorship is the method of structuring most entrepreneurs utilize when starting out in a small-scale commercial venture. This works if services provided are simple, of relatively small transaction size, small inventory required and there is no need for hiring and paying employees. As sales grow and the need to expand becomes apparent the entrepreneur will probably want to consider a more formidable structure.
Here is my advice when considering the business structure best suited for your business, based on present and future needs: consult an attorney. Taxes, investment vehicles, partnering, harvesting profits, incorporation options, and depreciation or only a few of the areas of concern a new business may need to consider and decide upon. A business attorney will have expertise in every area of concern and can construct the most appropriate structure for your business and personal needs. The ability to memorialize in precise legal documents the exact terms, conditions, and responsibilities of all officers and/or share holders in the company is invaluable when disagreements occur.
The importance of written agreements and contracts, signed by all parties to the transaction, cannot be overstated. No one ever enters into a business situation if they are 100% sure it will fail. There is always an air of confident expectation that the business has a good chance of success and will ultimately prosper. Unfortunately, there is always a significant chance that results will be disappointing and disagreements will occur. Make sure that all parties to a deal have a full awareness of the business structure they are participating in.
Oral contracts and agreements have been upheld in courts. However, they are much more difficult to enforce than properly written and executed business contracts. Do not leave important details to chance. Have proper documentation on hand for the protection of all parties.
Partnerships, limited partnerships, limited liability corporations, and corporations are popular vehicles for housing the legal structure of a business. Each has benefits and liabilities, depending on the needs and requirements of the business owner(s).
A partnership can be useful when several parties bring complimentary assets to a venture. One partner might have a patent that represents a commercial opportunity. Another might have investment resources they can bring to bear. Yet another potential partner has specific management experience to contribute.
I have entered into several partnerships in the past with mixed results. If there is a bit of advice I can offer to potential partners before they start it is this: have full agreement on how to harvest profit/loss when success/failure occurs. One partner wants to grow and mature a business, while another wishes to cash out after a few years and this is where the seeds of destruction are sown. Goals, as well as duties and responsibilities must be fully transparent.
The Limited Partnership can be an excellent opportunity for the entrepreneur wishing to put capital to work, but not physically committing to work on a project. Typically a General Partner will manage the business, and the Limited Partners provide the pool of money required in funding a business. Usually units of a Limited Partnership are sold in equal dollar amounts. Be sure and read the deal prospectus carefully and skeptically. In addition, be sure to familiarize yourself with the laws of the state where the business entity will be domiciled as the various states have different laws in this area.
A Limited Liability Corporation is a relatively new corporate structure that offers many of the advantages of the corporation and the benefits of individual tax rates. An attorney will be able to advise if the Limited Liability Corporation is appropriate for your particular needs.
A Corporation is the vehicle that requires the most care and maintenance, as well as providing maximum personal protection. A Corporation is ostensibly a legal entity that acts as if it were a person. Losses are incurred by the legal entity of the Corporation, not by the shareholders of the Corporation. Assets of an incorporated business are property of the Corporation, not the individual shareholders. The owners of stock in the Corporation enjoy benefits based on the number and class status of their shares.
An attorney can advise the best state in which to incorporate based on your anticipated needs. Nevada is the best state for secrecy. Delaware is excellent for transparency and resolution of disputes. Some states are more business friendly from a tax and regulation standpoint and all of these areas must be considered before filing for incorporation.
A Corporation will need to be assigned a Federal Identification Number in order to open a bank account at any financial institution in the United States. The Federal Government utilizes this number when tracking tax, financial and employment data on every incorporated business.
The Articles of Incorporation, annual meeting minutes, a board of directors, corporate fees and filings, state compliance and filing local, state and federal tax returns require a detailed, and potentially costly execution of corporate governance. In addition, stock certificates must be appropriately accounted for and capitalization requirements met and maintained.
Be realistic when choosing the business structure that will offer your fledgling enterprise the most useful features based on present and future needs. Many people file for incorporation, then realize they do not need the hassle of maintaining detailed books and records. Use the business structure that enables you to legally perform every obligation required, while allowing you to be a slave to your business opportunity, not a slave to your corporate structure.
How To Build Auto Lawn Sprinklers
Benedict Yossarian asked:
Green Thumbs are Not Necessary
Seeds will grow if planted and taken care of. All you need is a little water, lots of sun and a decent soil. This is the simple fact about gardening and life itself. There are no sure fire ways to ensure that you will have a garden worthy of a blue ribbon award, but there are definite ways to ensure that your plants will grow nicely. Plants will not care if you have prior experience in gardening or not, all they need are the basic necessities to live and they will do the rest. What most people fail to realize about gardening is that plants wish to grow for their own selves, not for the benefit of the garden owners. Owning a garden is taking on the responsibility of ensuring that your plants are growing well, it is not for the aesthetic approval of your neighbors. If your plants grow beautifully and your house looks nicer, that is a fringe benefit.
Appreciating Your Plants
One thing garden owners should realize is that plants are living things. Humans, animals and plants all possess life and that life should be nurtured and cherished. Owning a garden is a testament to human being’s capability to take care of all other living things on this planet. This is why owning a garden is not just a hobby; it is a way of life. While we may not mourn the passing of a shrub or can easily ignore the death of a tree, it is an undeniable fact that every plant in our garden is a living thing and we should take care of it.
Taking on this responsibility, while important is an actually quite simple. Plants, as living things, have the will and capacity to live; as long as they receive the right amount of resources needed, they will flourish on their own without the need for special care and attention. But when it is not given, plants will naturally wither and die. This is the conundrum for all gardens.
Understanding the Benefits of Having a Garden
What will give you the best drive and motivation to properly take care of your garden is by identifying the many benefits that a garden gives to a home. A lawn alone gives you space to breathe and appreciate your house more. The effect that a lawn gives to a household are plenty and quite beneficial. Health wise, having a garden will give you a supply of fresh clean air when you leave the house in the morning and when you arrive at home at night. Clean air is very important when it comes to relieving stress and many respiratory problems. Also, if you have a garden at the back of your home where you might hang laundry, the clean air will keep your clothes and other fabrics smelling fresh and clean.
Gardens give you a place to relax, have fun and play, either on your own or with your family. The garden can be your own personal place of restful solitude, away from the hustle and bustle of the busy city life. GP
How To Build Auto Lawn Sprinklers
Green Thumbs are Not Necessary
Seeds will grow if planted and taken care of. All you need is a little water, lots of sun and a decent soil. This is the simple fact about gardening and life itself. There are no sure fire ways to ensure that you will have a garden worthy of a blue ribbon award, but there are definite ways to ensure that your plants will grow nicely. Plants will not care if you have prior experience in gardening or not, all they need are the basic necessities to live and they will do the rest. What most people fail to realize about gardening is that plants wish to grow for their own selves, not for the benefit of the garden owners. Owning a garden is taking on the responsibility of ensuring that your plants are growing well, it is not for the aesthetic approval of your neighbors. If your plants grow beautifully and your house looks nicer, that is a fringe benefit.
Appreciating Your Plants
One thing garden owners should realize is that plants are living things. Humans, animals and plants all possess life and that life should be nurtured and cherished. Owning a garden is a testament to human being’s capability to take care of all other living things on this planet. This is why owning a garden is not just a hobby; it is a way of life. While we may not mourn the passing of a shrub or can easily ignore the death of a tree, it is an undeniable fact that every plant in our garden is a living thing and we should take care of it.
Taking on this responsibility, while important is an actually quite simple. Plants, as living things, have the will and capacity to live; as long as they receive the right amount of resources needed, they will flourish on their own without the need for special care and attention. But when it is not given, plants will naturally wither and die. This is the conundrum for all gardens.
Understanding the Benefits of Having a Garden
What will give you the best drive and motivation to properly take care of your garden is by identifying the many benefits that a garden gives to a home. A lawn alone gives you space to breathe and appreciate your house more. The effect that a lawn gives to a household are plenty and quite beneficial. Health wise, having a garden will give you a supply of fresh clean air when you leave the house in the morning and when you arrive at home at night. Clean air is very important when it comes to relieving stress and many respiratory problems. Also, if you have a garden at the back of your home where you might hang laundry, the clean air will keep your clothes and other fabrics smelling fresh and clean.
Gardens give you a place to relax, have fun and play, either on your own or with your family. The garden can be your own personal place of restful solitude, away from the hustle and bustle of the busy city life. GP
How To Build Auto Lawn Sprinklers
Alex Murphy asked:
If you are fed up with using artificial chemical plant foods and poisons to card for your yard and lawn, perhaps you ought to have a look at one of mother nature’s oldest and most often looked soil conditioners – earthworms.
Earthworms have been on the planet for centuries and act as a natural control to other lawn pests and micro-organisms. Not only are they good for the soil, but their very presence indicates that the soil is healthy. If you find no earthworms in your soil, you literally may not have healthy soil.
Earthworms also help to aerate your soil which is important to the root systems of plants. If your soil is too dense, water and nutrients will have trouble reaching the root systems of your grass or other plants and will lead to them starving or traveling to the surface, which is not good. Aeration has a plethora of benefits to the soil. It helps to reduce and eliminate thatching. It reduces water runoff and improves soil drainage. Aeration helps to loosen compacted soil, especially soil that has a heavy percentage of clay, allowing the soil to “breathe.”
It’s unlikely that you’ll see earthworms during the day. They hate the daylight, probably from eons of experience being eaten by early morning birds. They love the dark and that is where you’ll most likely find them on the surface. They also seek the surface after long periods of rain where they may come to the surface for air.
If you want to drive all the earthworms to your neighbor’s lawn, then use a chemical fertilizer that has a high percentage of nitrogen. Large amounts of nitrogen tend to make the soil acidic which earthworms do not like. If the soil becomes too acidic, your friendly earthworms will seek greener pastures elsewhere.
If, however, you want to help your earthworm friends, leave your lawn clippings on the lawn when you cut it. The grass clippings contain natural levels of nitrogen, which is good for the soil. In addition, lawn clippings are a good source of food for earthworms.
Many chemical fertilizers have trifluralin as an active ingredient. Trifluralin is a suspected carcinogen which the EPA put under special review in the early eighties because of the presence of a contaminant that had been shown to cause tumors in animals. If you use chemical fertilizers on your soil, you are possibly putting the health of your lawn’s earthworms in danger.
Eliminating poisons has other benefits as well. Domesticated dogs and cats often chew on grass, dandelions, and other plants in the garden. If the lawn and plants have been treated with pesticides, your pets are also eating pesticides. In the best case, they will not be harmed. But depending on the levels of pesticides used, they could end up with an upset stomach or worse, they could be seriously poisoned. The same applies to your kids if they play on the lawn and put things in their mouth as young kids will often do.
With these facts in mind, even though the use of chemical fertilizers is often a much easier way of keeping your lawn looking good, you have ask yourself if it’s worth it. If, however, you are willing to try natural means of lawn care, you may find that the lowly earthworm is your lawn’s new best friend.
Create a Lawn care Business
If you are fed up with using artificial chemical plant foods and poisons to card for your yard and lawn, perhaps you ought to have a look at one of mother nature’s oldest and most often looked soil conditioners – earthworms.
Earthworms have been on the planet for centuries and act as a natural control to other lawn pests and micro-organisms. Not only are they good for the soil, but their very presence indicates that the soil is healthy. If you find no earthworms in your soil, you literally may not have healthy soil.
Earthworms also help to aerate your soil which is important to the root systems of plants. If your soil is too dense, water and nutrients will have trouble reaching the root systems of your grass or other plants and will lead to them starving or traveling to the surface, which is not good. Aeration has a plethora of benefits to the soil. It helps to reduce and eliminate thatching. It reduces water runoff and improves soil drainage. Aeration helps to loosen compacted soil, especially soil that has a heavy percentage of clay, allowing the soil to “breathe.”
It’s unlikely that you’ll see earthworms during the day. They hate the daylight, probably from eons of experience being eaten by early morning birds. They love the dark and that is where you’ll most likely find them on the surface. They also seek the surface after long periods of rain where they may come to the surface for air.
If you want to drive all the earthworms to your neighbor’s lawn, then use a chemical fertilizer that has a high percentage of nitrogen. Large amounts of nitrogen tend to make the soil acidic which earthworms do not like. If the soil becomes too acidic, your friendly earthworms will seek greener pastures elsewhere.
If, however, you want to help your earthworm friends, leave your lawn clippings on the lawn when you cut it. The grass clippings contain natural levels of nitrogen, which is good for the soil. In addition, lawn clippings are a good source of food for earthworms.
Many chemical fertilizers have trifluralin as an active ingredient. Trifluralin is a suspected carcinogen which the EPA put under special review in the early eighties because of the presence of a contaminant that had been shown to cause tumors in animals. If you use chemical fertilizers on your soil, you are possibly putting the health of your lawn’s earthworms in danger.
Eliminating poisons has other benefits as well. Domesticated dogs and cats often chew on grass, dandelions, and other plants in the garden. If the lawn and plants have been treated with pesticides, your pets are also eating pesticides. In the best case, they will not be harmed. But depending on the levels of pesticides used, they could end up with an upset stomach or worse, they could be seriously poisoned. The same applies to your kids if they play on the lawn and put things in their mouth as young kids will often do.
With these facts in mind, even though the use of chemical fertilizers is often a much easier way of keeping your lawn looking good, you have ask yourself if it’s worth it. If, however, you are willing to try natural means of lawn care, you may find that the lowly earthworm is your lawn’s new best friend.
Create a Lawn care Business
Fern Marshall Bradley asked:
Saving the Earth and protecting children and pets from dangerous chemicals are the reasons most gardeners cite for giving up pesticides and synthetic fertilizers, but guess what? Making the switch to organic gardening methods will save you money too! Here are six examples of how going organic will put money back in your pocket.
**Plant veggies, spend less on doctor bills. A recent article by a Texas research biochemist summarizes some bad news: many scientific studies show that the vitamin content of fresh fruits and vegetables is on the decline. That’s alarming, because fresh produce should be an important source of vitamins and minerals in our diets — without them, we’re more vulnerable to getting sick. Fortunately, there’s a simple way to protect your health and reduce what you spend on costly doctor visits, cold and flu medications, and vitamin pills: plant some vegetables. Fresh-picked home garden produce is brimming with nutrition, and recent studies confirm that organically grown produce can be even richer in nutrients than conventionally grown fruits and veggies.
**Fire your lawn care service. How much do you pay for a lawn care company to treat your lawn? Chances are it’s way too much. So ditch the lawn service and hire a local teen to mow for you instead. To encourage a healthy lawn the organic way, have your hired help set the mower high — at least 3 inches high. That way, your lawn grass naturally shades out weeds (no more herbicides needed). Be sure your helper uses a mulching mower that returns grass clippings — which contain valuable nitrogen — to the lawn (no more bagged fertilizer needed). Once a year, have your helper spread good-quality compost too, about 1/4 inch thick. The compost will melt into the lawn almost immediately, adding a wide range of nutrients as well as beneficial microbes that help prevent lawn diseases.
**Fight pests with flowers instead of pesticides. More than 90 percent of the insects in your yard and garden are your friends, not your foes. Ladybugs, lacewings, and even many kinds of flies and tiny wasps are an important natural pest control force. Their larvae (the immature stages of the insects) gobble up aphids and other pests, or parasitize the caterpillars that would like to turn the foliage of your flowers and veggies into a holey mess. One easy way to attract these good-guy insects to your yard organically is to plant a garden of perennials and herbs with tiny flowers, because the adult beneficial insects eat pollen, not bugs. Yarrow, purple coneflowers, daisies, tansy, cosmos, marigolds, and zinnias are great plants to start with, and you’ll love how they look growing in sunny spots all around your yard. Buying a few packets of annual seeds and several potted perennials is much cheaper — and much more fun — than buying pesticides and a sprayer!
**Forget the bagged fertilizer — buy seeds instead. It’s true! A packet of cover crop seeds such as buckwheat or oats will add as much fertility to your garden beds as any bag of synthetic fertilizer can. And that’s just the start of the story. Using synthetic fertilizer is a vicious cycle, because the chemicals in the fertilizer kill or repel beneficial earthworms and other organisms that help build a healthy soil. Plus, chemical fertilizer easily washes down through the soil when it rains, ending up in the groundwater we drink! You’ll save big in the long term by planting cover crops instead—they prevent soil erosion, they encourage earthworms and other good guys, and they enrich your soil naturally. Simply sow the cover crop seed on lightly loosened soil, rake it in lightly, and water it to speed germination. Within 4 to 8 weeks, you can cut down the crop with shears or your lawn mower, and all that rich green material will naturally break down, leaving you a nutrient-primed planting bed that will produce bumper crops of veggies, fruit, or flowers.
**Reduce your water bill by capturing rainwater. Depending on where you live, as much as 50 percent of the water you use goes to keeping your garden green and growing. That’s a big expense that will only get bigger as water supply problems increase around the country. But for less than $100, you can buy and install a rain barrel that will capture the rain that falls on your roof, providing you a free supply of water for your gardens virtually indefinitely. Rain barrels are available from home centers and mail-order suppliers, and it takes no special skills to install one.
**Grow gourmet salad toppings on the cheap. Microgreens are all the rage at fancy restaurants and farm markets, but boy are they expensive! Here’s a secret: you can grow your own microgreens at any time of year on a sunny windowsill for a fraction of the price. Simply save leftover clamshell containers from the deli and buy some organic transplanting mix that’s enriched with compost. Clean the containers well, use a barbecue skewer to poke several drainage holes in each one, and fill them with moist mix. Then sprinkle veggie seeds (be sure the seeds haven’t been treated with pesticides) generously over the soil surface, cover lightly with more mix, and set the containers in a catch tray on the windowsill. Mist daily until sprouts appear, then water as needed to keep them growing. Within three weeks, the sprouts will reach the two-leaf stage, and you can snip them with scissors to garnish salads, sandwiches, and entrees. Use lettuce, arugula and other salad greens, as well as broccoli, kale, dill, cilantro, basil, even peas.
©2009 Fern Marshall Bradley, co-editor of The All-New Illustrated Guide to Gardening: Planning – Selection – Propagation – Organic Solutions
Create a Lawn care Business
Saving the Earth and protecting children and pets from dangerous chemicals are the reasons most gardeners cite for giving up pesticides and synthetic fertilizers, but guess what? Making the switch to organic gardening methods will save you money too! Here are six examples of how going organic will put money back in your pocket.
**Plant veggies, spend less on doctor bills. A recent article by a Texas research biochemist summarizes some bad news: many scientific studies show that the vitamin content of fresh fruits and vegetables is on the decline. That’s alarming, because fresh produce should be an important source of vitamins and minerals in our diets — without them, we’re more vulnerable to getting sick. Fortunately, there’s a simple way to protect your health and reduce what you spend on costly doctor visits, cold and flu medications, and vitamin pills: plant some vegetables. Fresh-picked home garden produce is brimming with nutrition, and recent studies confirm that organically grown produce can be even richer in nutrients than conventionally grown fruits and veggies.
**Fire your lawn care service. How much do you pay for a lawn care company to treat your lawn? Chances are it’s way too much. So ditch the lawn service and hire a local teen to mow for you instead. To encourage a healthy lawn the organic way, have your hired help set the mower high — at least 3 inches high. That way, your lawn grass naturally shades out weeds (no more herbicides needed). Be sure your helper uses a mulching mower that returns grass clippings — which contain valuable nitrogen — to the lawn (no more bagged fertilizer needed). Once a year, have your helper spread good-quality compost too, about 1/4 inch thick. The compost will melt into the lawn almost immediately, adding a wide range of nutrients as well as beneficial microbes that help prevent lawn diseases.
**Fight pests with flowers instead of pesticides. More than 90 percent of the insects in your yard and garden are your friends, not your foes. Ladybugs, lacewings, and even many kinds of flies and tiny wasps are an important natural pest control force. Their larvae (the immature stages of the insects) gobble up aphids and other pests, or parasitize the caterpillars that would like to turn the foliage of your flowers and veggies into a holey mess. One easy way to attract these good-guy insects to your yard organically is to plant a garden of perennials and herbs with tiny flowers, because the adult beneficial insects eat pollen, not bugs. Yarrow, purple coneflowers, daisies, tansy, cosmos, marigolds, and zinnias are great plants to start with, and you’ll love how they look growing in sunny spots all around your yard. Buying a few packets of annual seeds and several potted perennials is much cheaper — and much more fun — than buying pesticides and a sprayer!
**Forget the bagged fertilizer — buy seeds instead. It’s true! A packet of cover crop seeds such as buckwheat or oats will add as much fertility to your garden beds as any bag of synthetic fertilizer can. And that’s just the start of the story. Using synthetic fertilizer is a vicious cycle, because the chemicals in the fertilizer kill or repel beneficial earthworms and other organisms that help build a healthy soil. Plus, chemical fertilizer easily washes down through the soil when it rains, ending up in the groundwater we drink! You’ll save big in the long term by planting cover crops instead—they prevent soil erosion, they encourage earthworms and other good guys, and they enrich your soil naturally. Simply sow the cover crop seed on lightly loosened soil, rake it in lightly, and water it to speed germination. Within 4 to 8 weeks, you can cut down the crop with shears or your lawn mower, and all that rich green material will naturally break down, leaving you a nutrient-primed planting bed that will produce bumper crops of veggies, fruit, or flowers.
**Reduce your water bill by capturing rainwater. Depending on where you live, as much as 50 percent of the water you use goes to keeping your garden green and growing. That’s a big expense that will only get bigger as water supply problems increase around the country. But for less than $100, you can buy and install a rain barrel that will capture the rain that falls on your roof, providing you a free supply of water for your gardens virtually indefinitely. Rain barrels are available from home centers and mail-order suppliers, and it takes no special skills to install one.
**Grow gourmet salad toppings on the cheap. Microgreens are all the rage at fancy restaurants and farm markets, but boy are they expensive! Here’s a secret: you can grow your own microgreens at any time of year on a sunny windowsill for a fraction of the price. Simply save leftover clamshell containers from the deli and buy some organic transplanting mix that’s enriched with compost. Clean the containers well, use a barbecue skewer to poke several drainage holes in each one, and fill them with moist mix. Then sprinkle veggie seeds (be sure the seeds haven’t been treated with pesticides) generously over the soil surface, cover lightly with more mix, and set the containers in a catch tray on the windowsill. Mist daily until sprouts appear, then water as needed to keep them growing. Within three weeks, the sprouts will reach the two-leaf stage, and you can snip them with scissors to garnish salads, sandwiches, and entrees. Use lettuce, arugula and other salad greens, as well as broccoli, kale, dill, cilantro, basil, even peas.
©2009 Fern Marshall Bradley, co-editor of The All-New Illustrated Guide to Gardening: Planning – Selection – Propagation – Organic Solutions
Create a Lawn care Business
Craig Elliott asked:
The winter can be a hard time to deal with your lawn and garden equipment. It is a tough time on many aspects of your home and your lawn, because of the frigid temperatures. The equipment usually has a much rougher time than you would imagine, because many people seem to forget about their lawn mowers, weed whackers, and other types of equipment when the leaves fall. Many people stick these pieces of lawn and garden equipment into the shed or the garage without a second thought, and are then surprised when they don’t work right in the spring. You spend a lot of money on these pieces of lawn and garden equipment, so why not make sure that they are taken care of?
When you have pieces of lawn and garden equipment that you want to take care of, there are many things that you can do to make sure they are taken care of well when the snow flies. First of all, the pieces of lawn and garden equipment that run on gasoline should be emptied after the last time they are used. Before you mow your lawn for the last time in the fall, be sure that you put in just enough gasoline to do the job. After you are finished, run the mower so that all of the gasoline is used, or empty it completely out. For these items that use gasoline and have a motor, you want to make sure that they are cleaned, and then drain the oil and take out the spark plug. After that, you want to put in just a few drops of oil and crank the engine only enough to move that oil around. Then, you should put the spark plug back in place. The next thing that you should to the pieces of your lawn and garden equipment that have engines is to tighten any of the loose screws in the machine. Now, wipe down these machines and get them ready for storage along with the others.
For the lawn and garden equipment that don’t run on gasoline, you should make sure that they are functioning properly and then unplug them for the year. If they have batteries, remove the batteries and store them someplace else. Wrap the chords around these and get them ready for storage.
The other parts of your lawn and garden equipment – the ones that don’t run on gasoline or electricity – should be completely cleaned before the fall ends. Make sure that they are wiped off, that all of the dirt and grass is removed, and that they are ready for storage.
After you have taken care of each individual piece of machinery or other pieces of supplies, you have to gather them all together for storage during the winter. This is a very important aspect of getting all of your items stored properly. You want to find a place where you can store your items safely and where they won’t be bothered by the weather. Usually, your garage or your shed will suffice.
Once you have chosen a location, be sure that you gather all of your equipment together. You want to store it all neatly and in a well organized fashion, so that you can find it again in the spring. Be sure that anything you leave out is covered well. This will help them from gathering moisture. Also, you want to be sure that you are able to secure anything that is attached to the walls. This is because often things slip and slide during the winter or animals get into your shed or garage. You simply want everything to be secured during this time of year.
Another thing that you should think about is the moisture on the floor. Leaving your garden supplies and equipment in a wet garage or shed is just as bad as leaving them outside. If you have a garage or shed that tends to lead or one where the floor tends to get wet, an easy solution is to lay down some plywood or some higher pieces of board, and put your equipment on that. You can secure the equipment to these pieces of wood, and then cover everything with a tarp.
Remember, it might seem like much too much work to do for a small amount of time. However, each piece of lawn and garden equipment that you own is something that you are going to want to hold on to, and something that you have already spent a lot of money on. Take the time to do these fall chores, and you will be able to rest easy over the winter – waiting for the spring.
Lawn Care Business Marketing Plan
The winter can be a hard time to deal with your lawn and garden equipment. It is a tough time on many aspects of your home and your lawn, because of the frigid temperatures. The equipment usually has a much rougher time than you would imagine, because many people seem to forget about their lawn mowers, weed whackers, and other types of equipment when the leaves fall. Many people stick these pieces of lawn and garden equipment into the shed or the garage without a second thought, and are then surprised when they don’t work right in the spring. You spend a lot of money on these pieces of lawn and garden equipment, so why not make sure that they are taken care of?
When you have pieces of lawn and garden equipment that you want to take care of, there are many things that you can do to make sure they are taken care of well when the snow flies. First of all, the pieces of lawn and garden equipment that run on gasoline should be emptied after the last time they are used. Before you mow your lawn for the last time in the fall, be sure that you put in just enough gasoline to do the job. After you are finished, run the mower so that all of the gasoline is used, or empty it completely out. For these items that use gasoline and have a motor, you want to make sure that they are cleaned, and then drain the oil and take out the spark plug. After that, you want to put in just a few drops of oil and crank the engine only enough to move that oil around. Then, you should put the spark plug back in place. The next thing that you should to the pieces of your lawn and garden equipment that have engines is to tighten any of the loose screws in the machine. Now, wipe down these machines and get them ready for storage along with the others.
For the lawn and garden equipment that don’t run on gasoline, you should make sure that they are functioning properly and then unplug them for the year. If they have batteries, remove the batteries and store them someplace else. Wrap the chords around these and get them ready for storage.
The other parts of your lawn and garden equipment – the ones that don’t run on gasoline or electricity – should be completely cleaned before the fall ends. Make sure that they are wiped off, that all of the dirt and grass is removed, and that they are ready for storage.
After you have taken care of each individual piece of machinery or other pieces of supplies, you have to gather them all together for storage during the winter. This is a very important aspect of getting all of your items stored properly. You want to find a place where you can store your items safely and where they won’t be bothered by the weather. Usually, your garage or your shed will suffice.
Once you have chosen a location, be sure that you gather all of your equipment together. You want to store it all neatly and in a well organized fashion, so that you can find it again in the spring. Be sure that anything you leave out is covered well. This will help them from gathering moisture. Also, you want to be sure that you are able to secure anything that is attached to the walls. This is because often things slip and slide during the winter or animals get into your shed or garage. You simply want everything to be secured during this time of year.
Another thing that you should think about is the moisture on the floor. Leaving your garden supplies and equipment in a wet garage or shed is just as bad as leaving them outside. If you have a garage or shed that tends to lead or one where the floor tends to get wet, an easy solution is to lay down some plywood or some higher pieces of board, and put your equipment on that. You can secure the equipment to these pieces of wood, and then cover everything with a tarp.
Remember, it might seem like much too much work to do for a small amount of time. However, each piece of lawn and garden equipment that you own is something that you are going to want to hold on to, and something that you have already spent a lot of money on. Take the time to do these fall chores, and you will be able to rest easy over the winter – waiting for the spring.
Lawn Care Business Marketing Plan
