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About Hermiston herald. (Hermiston, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 28, 2016)
HOME IMPROVEMENT & CAR CARE 6 • EAST OREGONIAN/HERMISTON HERALD WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 28, 2016 STAFF PHOTO BY KATHY ANEY Master Gardner Jim Willis walks around his backyard garden talking about end-of-season gardening chores and picking ripe fruit and vegetables. MASTER GARDENER SHARES TIPS FOR WINTER PREP It’s time to put your garden, and tools, to bed properly for winter By GEORGE PLAVEN East Oregonian A s fall weather brings an end to this year’s growing season, Master Gardener Jim Willis, of Pendleton, says now is the time to start looking ahead and planning for next spring. Gardeners should take steps to keep both their tools and their soil in top condition, Willis said. That includes composting, testing composition and texture of soils and applying light oils to hand tools to keep them from rusting. One of the irst things Willis does every fall is take a photo or drawing of what he’s grown in his garden over the summer, so he can be sure to rotate his veg- etables next year. Rotating crops helps to break up diseases in the soil and allow the plants to draw on different nutrients. “You don’t want to put the same thing in,” Willis said. Willis grows a wide variety of vegetables in his own garden, including tomatoes, cucumbers, onions, carrots, beets, radishes, bell peppers and hot peppers. He also harvests bags illed with leaves from his yard along the Umatilla River, which he will leave open on the ground in order to lure in worms and provide them food and protection. These “worm islands,” as Willis calls them, are a rich source of carbon, and the worm castings — i.e. poop — provide some of the richest natural fertilizer available. “If you want to have good soil, you want to have worms in it,” Willis said. Gardeners can also mow in leaves about 3-5 inches deep into their soil, Willis said, along with additional compost to help plants thrive. Good soil, according to Willis’ research, breaks down to roughly 45 per- cent minerals, 25 percent water, 25 percent air and 5 percent organic material. Compost is key to help- ing crops get the nutrients and microbial support they need. As for soil structure, Willis recommends a simple test. First, ill a jar about halfway with soil from the yard or garden, add water until the jar is nearly full, give it a shake and let it rest overnight. The soil will separate into three layers, with sand at the bottom, silt at the middle and clay at the top. “It’s important to have all three types of those ele- ments in your soil,” he said. Willis said gardeners should keep an eye on wheth- er the soil is too loose and sandy, or too dense and full of clay. From there, they can make any adjustments before re-planting later in the spring. “(The jar test) doesn’t cost you a cent, and it gives you an idea of what you need to do in your garden,” Willis said. Around this time, Willis said he starts getting busy cleaning plants out of the garden that won’t survive through the irst frost. His carrots, however, are frost tolerant, and he will overwinter those by shielding them with soil, compost and a cover layer of leaves. For his hand tools, Willis recommends linseed oil on any wooden handles to keep them strong, and light oil to keep the metal heads from rusting. Willis, 75, has been gardening his whole life and been a master gardener for eight years. He said put- ting the garden to bed can be labor intensive, but well worth the effort. “Gardening is a joy,” he said with a smile. “It’s not work. It’s happiness.” Money going up chimney? How to make your ireplace more eficient By StatePoint Nothing beats gathering around the ire in winter. Unfortunately, a wood-burning ireplace could be a major source of energy loss in your home, sending your utility bills sky high. However, you don’t need to sacriice the ire to improve your home’s energy eficiency and reduce your heating bills; in fact, it’s possible to convert your wood ireplace into an eficient heat source with the following tips. Upgrade Your Fireplace Consider a gas ireplace insert. They generate more radiant heat and are cleaner to maintain than traditional masonry style wood-burning ireplaces, which are a leading source of indoor air loss. “Traditional wood ireplaces add a lot of charm to a home, but they are ineficient -- even when they aren’t in use,” says Andy Tesch, brand director of Heat & Glo, the leading manufacturer of innovative gas ire- places, stoves and inserts. “A gas ireplace insert is a great alternative to maintain the ambiance a ire creates while enhancing ef- iciency.” A gas ireplace insert is cleaner, too, cre- ating no ash, soot, or smoke. Models like the Escape from Heat & Glo use energy-saving FireBrick technology to increase eficiency and are low maintenance, turning on and off with the lip of a switch. Learn more about the beneits of a gas ireplace insert at heatn- glo.com/insertawareness. If you can’t part with the aroma, crackle and act of building a real ire, consider pellet Imagine the possibilites and EPA-certiied wood inserts, which can be an easy, clean and eficient alternative as well. Best Practices If making the upgrade to an insert is not possible, a few simple steps can drastically improve the energy eficiency of your ire- place. Number one, when the ireplace is not in use, close the chimney damper. You’ll prevent warm air and your money from go- ing up and out the chimney. A lue sealer is an affordable, inlatable stopper that its be- low the damper to further seal off the chim- ney and is a worthwhile purchase. Proper maintenance can also go far to improve your ireplace’s eficiency. Have it inspected, maintained and cleaned annual- ly. Even if you love DIY, you may want to hire a contractor to ensure the job is done safely and thoroughly. Considering adding doors or a cover to the front of your ireplace to help reduce the draft and improve the look. There are many styles available to enhance your interior design. F ALL IS A GOOD TIME TO PLANT GRASS AND REPAIR YOUR SPRINKLERS W E HAVE EVERYTHING YOU NEED . Blue Mountain Cabinet Suppliers Jeff 541-571-7136 Greg 379-1416 80998 N. Hwy 395 • Hermiston 81156 US-395, Hermiston, OR 97838 Phone: (541) 567-6370
