Search Results for: blog to garden or not to garden

We’re Putting in a Garden!

Yesterday was the first day that it actually felt like spring here in Pennsylvania. The daffodils actually bloomed, and we could walk around without our heavy coats and sweatshirts and sweaters. I parked the car in the driveway, in the sun, and got it cleaned out while my youngest and I waited for the kindergarten bus. All very nice, but the biggest development came later. After work, my husband started planning out a garden. Planning out a garden is something that he and I have been talking about for a while. Growing some of our own produce is a great … Continue reading →

Epcot Flower & Garden Festival Kicks Off This Week

This week the Epcot International Flower Garden Festival officially opens.  It’s one of Epcot’s longest events, in the length of time it’s going on at the park.  So from year to year it might not seem like a lot changes.  This year, though, it’s got something special up its sleeve. One of Disney’s big films of the year is “Oz: The Great & Powerful,” which tells the story of how a man from the American Midwest became the wonderful, terrible Wizard of Oz.  It opens on March 8, two days after the kickoff of the Flower & Garden Festival, and … Continue reading →

Another Citizen Loses a Garden Due to City Codes

During World War II, the government pushed Victory Gardens – gardens planted in public areas and residencies to help feed people during the war efforts.  Today, it seems that many gardeners are seeing the wrath of the government when it comes to residential gardens Not long ago, I told you about the plight of the Helvengstons, a couple in Orlando who have been told by local government to dig up their front yard vegetable garden. Doing a little research, I found that there are several citizens who have been asked to get rid of their gardens – or worse Denise … Continue reading →

That’s Not Very Green, Orlando!

Jason and Jennifer Helvengston are residents of College Park, a section of Orlando, Florida.  This area is close to downtown and popular among the working age citizens, of which the majority are homeowners.  But, if you are a homeowner, do you have the right to do whatever you want on your land? No, according to College Park officials. See, Jason and Jennifer decided to set up a 25 x 25 foot micro-irrigated vegetable garden in their front yard.  City code says your yard has to look “finished” and kept clean to keep property values up.  Therefore, officials told Jason he … Continue reading →

Pilot Program at Olive Garden and Red Lobster Ends

Darden, the parent company of Olive Garden and Red Lobster has decided to end its pilot program. The program cut worker’s hours down to 28 hours. The purpose was so Darden could refuse to offer workers an employer sponsored health plan. Public outcry seems to have influenced the company’s decision to end the pilot program. In October of 2012, Darden Restaurants, the parent company of Olive Garden, Red Lobster, (and others), announced that they would be implementing a pilot program. The pilot program would take place in some, but not all, restaurants. The “select number” of restaurants that were part … Continue reading →

It’s Fall – Time to Redesign Your Garden Space

What are you thankful for today? Today, I am thankful for my new garden up the road – a borrowed garden in someone else’s yard that is so much sunnier than my own. I’ve been having a lot of fun experimenting with mulching techniques and garden design. In my own small garden, I’ve had to be quite creative about space. I live in a townhouse with a tiny yard, and my tiny yard doesn’t really have room for a big garden bed. For a few years, I tried having a garden bed, but it just didn’t make sense. It was … Continue reading →

Four Not-So-Spooky Garden Helpers

Boo! It’s Halloween, and I’ve been walking into a lot of spider webs in the garden lately. This is one of the hazards of being tall: spiderwebs up the nose. Many of us are afraid of spiders, and I must admit to being a little less than friendly to them myself. Yet I love them when they’re creeping and climbing around their native environment. Their webs are beautiful, and they’re a very beneficial animal to have in the garden. Many so-called scary garden critters might seem odd to us, but I’m sure that we’d look really odd to them too. … Continue reading →

Comparing Candidates, Olive Garden, and Medicaid

It is time for another Week in Review for the Insurance blog. This week has a bunch of information about the Medicaid programs in two states. It also has a blog about a company that is cheating workers out of health insurance coverage, and a comparison of where the two candidates stand when it comes to women’s health care. How the Candidates Compare – Women’s Health Care Before you vote, take a minute to learn what each candidate’s ideas are regarding women’s health care. The women in your life will be directly affected by decisions made about coverage for women’s … Continue reading →

Olive Garden and Red Lobster Rob Workers of Insurance Coverage

Olive Garden and Red Lobster are using a sneaky trick to prevent their employees from qualifying for health insurance coverage. They are giving them just under the number of hours that would allow the worker to qualify for health insurance coverage. That number also exempts the company from covering them. It is absolutely imperative that people have health insurance coverage. In the United States, lack of coverage results in putting off preventative care until an avoidable condition becomes very serious. This is exactly what causes people to file for bankruptcy due to medical bills that they cannot afford to pay. … Continue reading →

Storing Garden Seeds for the Winter

If you’re a gardener, you likely have a stash of seeds. If you’re anything like me, these seeds vary from nice, neat and labeled packages gleaned from stores and friends to roughly-made envelopes with penciled names on them. Whether the seeds are gleaned from your own garden plants or from the garden store, you’ll want to keep them safe this winter so that you can plant them in the spring. Label your seeds so that you know what you have and where it came from. If you have more details about planting and growing that plant, add notes to your … Continue reading →