Herb Gardening for a Healthy You

herb gardening

Herb gardening is a great and easy solution for making a garden look and smell good.  Herbs provide this amazing scent while also providing flavor to kitchen dishes. Herbs are also good in case you are sick.

Herb gardening can be easy if you provide your herbs with sun and good drainage. Pesticides and fertilizers are rarely needed with herbs. Herbs also can grow in close quarters like containers. Containers are actually a very good solution for intrusive herbs that can create problems like mint and lemon verbena. Regular pinching and pruning keep plants compact and avoids the leggy looking herb which could also lose flavor. Read More

Which comes first, Design or Product Selection?

product selection

This is an age old question, which comes first, design or product selection. That probably ultimately depends on your approach, and the type of home remodeling project you are undertaking. Below are examples of how one can come before the other, and a third example where they are happening simultaneously.

With larger and more complex projects, the design usually comes before the product selection phase.  A good example is a kitchen remodel, which is one of the more complicated projects.  You really need to design the layout of the new kitchen and the overall style and look of the Read More

Design applies to all projects, big or small

Design applies to all projects

The word “design” in context of home improvement projects is often misunderstood.  Part of the reason is that the level of detail with a “design” can vary dramatically depending on the size and complexity of a project. However, design applies to all projects and let’s define the word “design” in context of different kinds of home remodeling projects.

A window covering project, you have a bedroom that has windows that need to have some covering because of privacy or light issues. If you are deciding between blinds and curtains, choosing one over the other is essentially picking a design. Let’s say you want blinds. The next aspect of the design is the dimensions of the window, which could be 36” x 24”. You have completed your design for this project yourself, and you can write it down on a piece of paper. Read More

Southern Gardens Inspiration: Bellingrath Gardens and Birmingham Botanical Gardens

Southern Gardens Inspiration

It is that time of year when all the flowers are in full bloom.  Some of the HomeZada founders had an opportunity to visit two gardens in the Southern United States for southern gardens inspiration. First a visit to Bellingrath Gardens in Ocean Springs, AL. Walter and Bessie Bellingrath developed Bellingrath Gardens in 1927. With over 65 acres and well over 6,000 plants including camellias, azaleas, roses, and chrysanthemums, a visitor is sure to see some of the most spectacular gardens in this country. The rose garden is home to over 2,000 plants representing 75 varietals for southern gardens inspiration. You can learn more about these varieties here www.bellingrath.org/bellingrath-rose-garden.html  The great lawn is bordered with a variety of plants, well over 4,000 annually to meet seasonal needs.  The flower bed’s bordering the great lawn are over 400 feet long.  A visit to the great lawn takes you back in time as if you would play croquet on such a lovely space.

Read More