The best smart thermostats make your life easier and more comfortable. Plus, you will save money and energy. It’s as simple as that. After all, you want your house to be cool on a sweltering summer day. You also want to be warm and cozy when the winter winds blow. The last thing you want to do is crawl out from under the covers to turn up the heat. Or, be forced to walk across a hot house to turn up the air conditioner. Wouldn’t it be nice to have a smart thermostat so you could adjust your home’s temperatures from your smart phone? That’s now an option—thanks to programmable smart thermostats. Here are some of the basic things to know before buying a smart thermostat. Keep reading for our guide to the best smart thermostats that includes reviews of the best Wi-Fi thermostats to buy now. What Is a Smart Thermostat? A smart thermostat connects to Wi-Fi and automatically adjusts the heating and cooling temperatures inside your house for optimal performance. You can … [Read more...] about A Guide to the Best Smart Thermostats
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Best Flowering Vines for Vertical Gardening
Flowering vines are a gardener’s secret weapon—especially when you run out of horizonal gardening space. If you have a small garden space and you still crave more plants, the answer is as simple as vertical gardening with flowering vines. Even if you still have horizontal growing space, vines reaching heavenward add another dimension to your landscape. There’s something magical about a clear blue sky behind masses of white blooms on classic morning glory vine. Or, fluffy white clouds floating behind cascades of lavender-blue flowers on a blooming wisteria. Even misty rain filling the tubular orange flowers on trumpet vine can make you smile and feel good. Flowering vines give a garden an appealing romantic look. They tease you to come hither and entangle your thoughts and emotions with them. They curl and wind their way around trellises and arbors and across the tops of fences. Some flowering vines even tantalize you with their sweet smells. Most vines are heavy and … [Read more...] about Best Flowering Vines for Vertical Gardening
Best Cordless Electric Tillers
Cordless electric tillers and cultivators combine impressive digging power with eco-friendly benefits. The electric motor of a cordless electric tiller is quiet, energy efficient, and it starts immediately. Plus, an electric tiller or cultivator will never run out of gas. Garden tillers and cultivators make it easier to prepare a garden plot for planting. Because let’s face it, turning soil over with a shovel can be back-breaking work. Most people DO NOT say tilling the soil by hand is one of their favorite gardening chores. That’s why the power tiller was invented. A motorized power tool that breaks up the dirt prior to planting is a terrific labor-saving device. It’s no surprise the power tiller has become one of the most popular garden tools. Gasoline-powered tillers have been around for decades. They became even more popular in the 1980s with the introduction of the Mantis mini-tiller. But it wasn’t until the 21st century that electric tillers and cultivators became … [Read more...] about Best Cordless Electric Tillers
Grow Your Best Garden Ever
Would you like to grow your best garden ever? Well, great gardens don’t just happen. They certainly do not magically appear in your yard. So, the sooner you plan and start your best garden ever, the sooner it will begin to manifest in your yard. A great garden is typically the result of careful planning. Most extraordinary gardens are created over a period of years using the garden plan. Add a few happy accidents that happen along the way, and you have the recipe for a special horticultural wonder that will be the envy of the neighborhood. Don’t Be Afraid of Small Failures Talk to experienced gardeners and garden experts, and most will freely admit to buying plants that did not survive in their gardens. Karen Park Jennings, the former president of Park Seed, once told me, “I’ve learned a lot by killing plants.” That’s part of being a gardener. Some gardeners will even admit that some of their favorite plants arrived as volunteers in their garden. One of the healthiest … [Read more...] about Grow Your Best Garden Ever
Best Flowering Houseplants
As the popularity of houseplants continues to soar, Byron Martin of Logee’s Plants for Home and Garden selects some of the best flowering houseplants to grow now. Houseplants are more popular than ever. So, it shouldn’t be surprising that more people are now searching for the best flowering houseplants. More than 33 million Americans grew houseplants in 2019. And that was before the COVID-19 pandemic forced us to spend more time at home. Now houseplants are trending all over social media as millennials become proud “plant parents.” “One of the most popular categories of houseplants is flowering plants, and sales of the best flowering houseplants are stronger than ever,” said Byron Martin, co-owner of Logee’s Plants for Home and Garden. “Flowering plants bring color and life into any room.” Despite how tropical they appear, many varieties of the best flowering houseplants are actually quite easy to grow. Here are seven of Martin’s favorite flowering houseplants. Best … [Read more...] about Best Flowering Houseplants