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Flowering varieties add extra color and sweet fragrances. Depending on where you live and the conditions in your yard, different shrubs can add evergreen texture, groundcover on a slope, and even more privacy by blocking street noise. They also help protect the soil from erosion and support wildlife with food and shelter. Here’s a look at various important characteristics to consider to pick out the best shrubs for your yard....

Where to Plant Astilbe This showy garden perennial produces spikes of beautiful flowers that enliven the garden and add texture to flower arrangements in spring and summer. Hardy in USDA Zones 4-8, it grows best in partial shade, although it tolerates sun as long as it is kept moist. How and When to Plant Astilbe Plant astilbe early in the spring in well-drained soil with added compost and a general-purpose granular fertilizer....

Bell Pepper Care Must-Knows Peppers are a warm-season crop. In many areas, they are one of the last vegetables to be planted in the garden in spring. Wait until nighttime temperatures are regularly in the 50 to 55°F range before planting transplants in the garden. Plant transplants 2 to 2½ feet apart in full sun in rich, well-drained soil. Peppers demand at least 8 hours of direct sunlight a day to produce fruit....

Know what you’re going to get. Unique foliage patterns, such as mottled leaves or gold leaf margins, are usually lost when snake plant is multiplied by cuttings. A variegated leaf cutting will root and then new shoots or pups that emerge are usually solid green. A solid green snake plant is great houseplant; simply know that a cutting will not produce a replica of the parent plant. To get a new plant that looks exactly like the parent plant, division is the way to go....

What are figs? The common edible fig belongs to the genus Ficus, which includes hundreds of species throughout the world, with most originating in the tropics like popular fiddle leaf fig houseplants. Common figs, however, are native to the Mediterranean and Western Asia, where they have been grown for their sweet fruits for thousands of years. Coming from more temperate climates, deciduous common figs can grow much further north than their tropical cousins and thrive in USDA Zones 7-10....

Today’s mustard yellow paint colors and home accessories provide warmth with a jolt of modern energy. However, Nivara Xaykao, associate manager of color marketing and development at Benjamin Moore, cautions that the shade requires careful consideration and expertise to pull off. “The color is very decadent, a stylish alternative to gold,” she says. “Using a bright, primary yellow is almost expected these days, but using a deep, earthy mustard hue in a fresh way takes a lot of finesse....

Canvas For permanent marker on canvas upholstery, blot the stain with rubbing alcohol until removed. (Test on an inconspicuous part of the upholstery first to make sure colors do not run.) Sponge with clear, cold water. Blot dry. Note: Follow any instructions on the upholstery’s label as well. To remove a permanent marker stain from canvas, rinse the item under a steady stream of cold water until water runs clear. Blot stain with rubbing alcohol (test on an inconspicuous spot first), rinse, and air-dry....

Depending on the type of stain, and how deep it is, you might be able to easily fix the spot. Follow these steps for tips on how to remove stains from wood floors, including how to remove water marks and what kind of stain removers to use. Before you know it, your hardwood floor will look as though it’s never had a stain. Before Getting Started To remove wood floor stains, first determine what the ring or watermark looks like....

To start, you’ll learn how to roast garlic in the oven and get tips on how long to roast garlic (so it always turns out soft and not dry). We also provide instructions on how to “roast” garlic on the grill for an impressive addition to your next cookout menu. From there, put your roasted garlic to good use with our delicious recipe ideas. Step 1: Prep the Garlic Bulb Look for a medium to large bulb (also called a head) of garlic for roasting....

Some sections of old, unpainted shingles and siding may look darker than others. This discoloration is most likely caused by excessive tannins leaching from the wood and mildew growth. You’ll have to remove the mildew and prime the wood with a stain-blocking primer. You can prime and paint new shingles as soon as you’ve installed them, which is preferable since weathering can quickly alter the paintability of wood. You’ll have to recondition the wood fibers if you haven’t finished or painted cedar shingles within two weeks....

Pumpkin Carving Safety Carving jack-o’-lanterns is one of our favorite Halloween traditions, but there are a few safety precautions you should know about before you begin carving. These pumpkin carving safety tips will make sure you get through the spooky season with all your fingers intact. Most importantly: Always supervise children while carving, and always be sure to cut away from the hand that’s holding the pumpkin. Using a printable pumpkin stencil will help you make small and precise cuts, and choosing a soft pumpkin will make you less likely to cut yourself as you’re carving out a friendly face....

Since meringue and whipped cream can be tricky to deal with, we turned to our Test Kitchen for the best tips on how to store lemon meringue pie, chocolate silk pie, and all other cream pies. Also, check out our guide for serving cream pie so each slice dishes up perfectly for the family. How to Store Meringue Pie and Other Cream Pies Here’s the scoop for ensuring your pie comes out of the refrigerator as beautifully as it went in....

Although this is technically true, an artist can’t actually derive a pure green or purple from the primaries – the intensity of the mixed color won’t equal that of the parents. For decorating decisions, however, you need only be aware that purple relates to both red and blue and that green derives from yellow and blue. Those relationships mean the colors will harmonize with each other. Reading the Wheel: The color wheel generally shows the pure hues of colors: red, blue, and green....

Weather stripping is quick and easy to install yourself, so there’s no need to make a call to a contractor or handyman. Just follow the steps below to put your home on the path toward comfort and efficiency. Types of Door Weather Stripping There are many types of weather stripping for doors, each with its own strengths and weaknesses. The steps below outline how to install foam weather stripping with an adhesive backing, but the general idea can be applied to many types of weather stripping with some slight adjustments....

Hybrid Tea Rose Care This class of rose is most commonly grown to be a cut flower. As such, the plants themselves aren’t the most beautiful in a garden setting. With quick-growing upright stems, few leaves, and generally only one bud per stem, hybrid tea roses can be pretty sparse looking. However, this can also be to their advantage, as they’ll blend in with the right perennial partners. Fungal Problems To start, roses need full sun....

Is Royal Icing Made with Raw Egg Whites Safe to Eat? The risk is slight, but it is certainly possible for raw egg whites to contain food-borne pathogens, such as Salmonella. Fortunately, you can prepare royal icing using two different methods with little to no risk by using meringue powder or pasteurized egg whites. Royal Icing with Meringue Powder Available at crafts stores and bakery supply outlets, meringue powder ($7, Walmart) is made from pasteurized dried egg whites....

In addition to being a freelance contributor to various home magazines, Jeanette is a content manager for Oracle where she works on the social marketing strategy for the Oracle CX cloud to help drive audience awareness. During her free time, Jeanette loves to let her creativity fly and create templates for wordpress.com. Throughout her creative journey, she has been featured in notable magazines such as Country Living, Pioneer Women, Today....