Timely Tips

Flowers...A Beautiful Garden Harvest
Fresh flowers not only make a welcome and thoughtful gift for special occasions, they add elegance and serenity to your home. Nurture them in your own cutting garden, and enjoy the beauty they provide outdoors as well as in.

Your flowers are in full bloom and you want to share them with your friends. But will cutting the blossoms take away from your landscape? To cut or not to cut, that’s the question. Many homeowners solve this challenge when they take the advice of the National Garden Bureau, and plant a cutting garden.

Creating a Cutting Garden
Unlike formal landscaped gardens, a cutting garden never has a “don’t pick the flowers” sign. It’s a separate plot, designated as a “production garden”, where you are free to snip away without a care.

Prepare the Lot
Like any other garden, a cutting garden should be planted in a sunny, well-drained area. Be sure to work in plenty of compost and mix a granular, slow release fertilizer into the soil before you plant.

Plant your Space
Since this is a production garden, you won’t have to worry about whether colors complement each other or plants look good together. Instead, you should be thinking “easy maintenance”. Most cutting gardens are set up like vegetable plots, with wide rows that allow plenty of room to move about.

Select the Plants you Want to Grow
This is purely a matter of taste – and climate. Generally long-stemmed annuals and perennials make the best cut flowers. Consult your local nursery professional for tips about which plants will grow best where you live, and choose accordingly. Give some thought to planting a mix of early, mid and late season bloomers, and include a few foliage plants for texture and color.

Plant your Flowers
Group plants with similar sun, water and drainage requirements together and take care that tall plants won’t shade shorter varieties. Consider planting large groupings of three or four particular plants instead of “a little of this and a little of that”.

Feed, Water & Nurture
Most established plants need about an inch of water per week. During peak production time, they will flourish if you give them periodic doses of organic liquid fertilizer. Remove faded blossoms (dead heading) to prevent them from forming seed. And be sure to check for aphids and other insects, which are attracted to flowering plants.

Harvest & Enjoy
To keep plants blooming throughout the summer, pick blossoms regularly. The more flowers you cut, the more you’ll have – that’s one of nature’s precious little gifts to us.

Out of your Garden & into a Vase
To keep your cut flowers fresh indoors, follow these tips:

• Harvest blooms in the early morning, which is the coolest part of the day.
• Cut the flowers by snipping each stem at an angle, using sharp shears.
• Keep a bucket of lukewarm water handy and place the cut ends of the stems in the water immediately. This keeps them from sealing over, significantly lengthening the lifespan of the flower in a vase.
• Once indoors, cut off another quarter inch of each stem and remove all leafy growth below the water level.
• Arrange in a vase filled with a mixture of water and floral preservative. You may use a commercial product, or create your own with equal parts of water and lemon-lime soda. Mix a gallon at a time, adding a drop or two of chlorine bleach.
• Remove wilted foliage and change water daily, using the floral preservative solution. Be sure no leaves or flower buds are left under water in the vase to decay.
  

Favorite Flowers to Grow & Give
When it comes to saying you care, nothing compares to the language of flowers. Whether you grow them yourself, or send them through your florist, keep in mind that these blooms have special meaning for giver and recipient alike.

Alstroemeria (Peruvian lily)-friendship Daffodil-chivalry Lilac-first love
Alyssum-worth beyond beauty Daisy-innocence Lily-majesty
Amaryllis-pride Forget-Me-Not-memories, farewell Magnolia-nobility
Anemone (windflower)-anticipation Freesia-innocence Orange blossoms-innocence
Aster-patience Gardenia-secret love Orchid-refinement
Bird of Paradise-joyfulness Gerbera daisy-beauty Ranunculus-radiant
Bluebell-constancy Gladiolus-sincerity Rose-love
Bouvardia-enthusiasm Honeysuckle-generous affection Snapdragon-desire
Calla lily-magnificent beauty Hydrangea-heartfelt Sunflower-desire
Carnation-fascination Iris-my compliments Sweetpea-farewell
Chrysanthemum-fidelity Jasmine-amiability Tulip-declaration of love
Cornflower-great happiness Jonquil-love me
Crocus-cheerfulness Larkspur-levity

What their Colors Mean
Pink – perfect happiness, gentility, grace, admiration
Yellow – friendship, joy, zeal
White – innocence, purity, secrecy
Peach/Coral – enthusiasm, sweetness, modesty
Purple – faithfulness, passion, hope

Does your House have Curb Appeal?
People often focus on how to decorate and improve the interior of the homes to reflect their personal taste. They often overlook the possibilities for improving the exterior of their homes – its curb appeal.

By making simple cosmetic changes to the overall visual appearance of your homes’ exterior and landscaping, you can create a home that truly reflects your style and that increases your enjoyment and satisfaction while living there.

Too often people put off these simple, relatively inexpensive improvements until they are ready to sell and by doing this they miss our on the opportunity to fully experience living in a home that is an expression of themselves (not the previous owner). They only see their house at its best when they are ready to pass it on to the next buyer.

For those of you who are planning on selling your home soon, making these changes will create a “come on in” look for any prospective buyers. While the interior might be in excellent condition, you only get one chance to make a good first impression.

Here are some Good Tips for Increasing your Home's Curb Appeal:
Patching cracks in an asphalt driveway will prevent water seepage and further cracking. This can be done either professionally or with a do-it-yourself application from a hardware store.

Power-washing a cement driveway will remove oil, rust, and other stains.
Inexpensive vinyl shutters will add more dimension to the exterior windows.
If the house exterior is lacking color or depth, adding window boxes with seasonal flowers adds greater curb appeal. Planters and seasonal flowers on a porch or a wide entry add both beauty and richness.

Frequent pruning and trimming of plants and shrubs provides a well cared for look. Also, well-manicured, clutter-free yards are always appealing.
An assortment of flowers planted around the base of a tree on a lawn is always a quality feature. Using mature plants rather than planting younger one that need time to grow should be considered.

Homeowners should take a realistic look at their house, and compare it to their neighbors. If it appears rather faded by comparison, a fresh coat of paint should be considered.

Last, but certainly not least, crystal clear windows are a strong indicator that the house has been well cared for.

Cool Tip
If you live in a area where it snows, spreading grass seed on the lawn before the winter season is a clever tip. As the snow melts in the spring and the ground begins to defrost, the ground receives plentiful moisture. Then, as the seed plants itself into the soil, a lush lawn will appear well before other neighborhood grass begins to sprout.

April Showers-- Brings More than Just Flowers
At long last, spring has arrived! April and May are the months when welcome signs of spring become evident. Depending on where you live, you’ve probably seen some telltale signs of seasonal change. Daylight lasts a little longer trees are once again showing signs of rebirth, while tulips begin to peek through the last of winter’s snow. It’s the time of year when we come to appreciate what winter had long concealed.

This is also a wonderful season to come out of our winter hibernation and renew relationships with family and friends by celebrating all that springtime has to offer. The months of April and May offer some very important dates that enable us to celebrate with others and display how much we appreciate them for the impact they have on our lives.

April: Good Friday/Passover/Easter Sunday
Some important religious holidays take place this month. On April 5th, Passover begins Good Friday is on the 9th and on the 11th, Easter Sunday
is celebrated. These are wonderful holidays when families and friends gather to share time-honored traditions and beliefs.

Administration Professional’s Day
Formerly known as Secretary’s Day, April 21st is when employers recognize these invaluable aides within their company. It’s a day when appreciation is customarily shown to these professionals by giving them flowers or taking them to lunch.

May: Mother's Day (May 9th)
The enormous responsibilities of motherhood extend far beyond that of life-giver. Mom was our doctor, nurse, chauffeur, house psychiatrist, homework partner, ATM machine, creative chef, and numerous other professions depending on the circumstances of the moment.

Take time this Mother’s Day to shower your mom with special recognition. However you decide to show your appreciation, be certain to present her with a bouquet of her favorite flowers. Few gifts represent love and sincerity more than flowers, which seem to say “Just because beautiful memories remind me of you.” Show your mom the depths of love and appreciation you have for all she’s done. Don’t miss out on making this Mother’s Day her most memorable one to date.

Mother's Day History
1907 – America’s first Mother’s Day observance was held in a West Virginia church.

1914 – President Woodrow Wilson proclaims Mother’s Day an official holiday.

Memorial Day (May 31st):
Memorial Day is one of remembrance for those who have given their lives in service to our nation. The custom of placing flowers on graves began in the 19th century, and over the years it came to serve as a day to remember

U.S. men and women killed or missing in action in all our wars.

Today, people take time on this special day to honor not only those who lost their lives in military service, but also to family members and friends whom they wish to remember.

Little Known Facts:
May 30, 1868 – The first observance of what was then known as Decoration Day.

1868 – More than 5,000 participants placed flowers on the gravesites of more than 20,000 Union and Confederate soldiers who fought in the Civil War. Today, that tradition continues by placing flags and flowers on gravesites of service men and women on this national day.

A More Taxing Time of Year: 2003 Tax Law Changes
There have been many changes to the 2003 tax laws that you should be aware of before filing your return this year. As always, not all changes in the law affect everyone the same way, i.e. college tuition, mileage deductions, etc. Here are but a few tax law changes that might be advantageous to you:

401(k) Limit Increase: Elective deferrals into a 401(k) plan are limited to $12,000 for 2003, except that employees age 50 or over are eligible to make an additional contribution up to $2000 for 2003.

403(b) Limit Increase: For 2003, the limit on elective deferrals has been increased from $11,000 to $12,000. The limit on elective deferrals will increase by $1,000 each year through 2006. If you are age 50 or older by the end of 2003, you may be permitted to make additional catch-up contributions of up to $2,000 to you 403(b) plan.

Lower Income Tax Rates: This will apply to all taxpayers. Rates have been lowered for the four highest income tax rates: 25%, 28%, 33%, 35%.

Standard Mileage Rate: For individuals and businesses that use a vehicle for business purposes, the allowance is now 36 cents per mile.

Self-Employed Health Insurance Deduction Increase: This deduction has been increased to 100% of health insurance expenses.

New Retirement Saving Contributions Credit: If you make eligible contributions to an employer-sponsored retirement plan or to an IRA, you may be able to take a tax credit.

Slim Down Your Taxes: In certain instances, weight-loss programs can be deducted only if a doctor has recommended some sort of regimen to reduce the risks associated with obesity and/or hypertension.

New Tuition Deduction: Qualified taxpayers can now deduct up to $3,000 for tuition and fees.

Student Loan Interest Deductions: The limitation allowing the deduction of only interest attributable to the first 60 months of loan payments has been eliminated.

Benefits of E-Filing

• Fast Refund – Your tax return is processed quickly which means in most states, you can have your refund directly deposited into your checking or savings account.
• Fast processing – Your refund is received twice as fast than regular mail, which saves time and brings you a faster refund of your Federal and State income tax.
• Improved Accuracy – Tax preparation software eliminates errors you may make, and e-file processing of the federal and State return eliminates most errors. The error rate on an e-file return is less than 1%.
• Proof of Filing – You can meet your Federal and State tax obligation at the same time. The IRS and state agency will confirm that your return has been received and accepted.
• Convenience – You can file electronically early, and pay any balance due the IRS by April 15.

The IRS Recommends the following checklist, especially when preparing your own tax filing.

• Did you use the correct IRS tax form 1040EZ, 1040A, or 1040?
• Did you use the peel-off label sent to you by the IRS and enter any corrections?
• If you do not have a label, or these are too many corrections to it, did you clearly print your name, social security number, and address, including zip code directly on your IRS tax return?
• Did you enter the names and social security numbers for yourself, your spouse, your dependents, and qualifying children for the earned income tax credit, exactly as they appear on the social security cards? If there has been any name changes, be sure to contact the Social Security Administrations at 1-800-772-1213.
• Did you enter your social security number on all tax schedules and tax statements attached to your IRS tax return?
• Did you enter taxable income, tax deductions, and tax credits on the correct liens of your IRS tax return and are the totals correct?
• If you show a negative amount on your IRS tax return, did you put brackets around it?
• If you are self-employed did you remember to deduct the allowable percentage of your self-employment tax?
• If you worked for more than one employer did you check to see if you are entitled to a tax refund of any excess FICA tax withheld?
• Did you make sure that you entered your former spouse’s social security number on Line 31 of IRS tax form 1040 if you are deducting alimony?
• Do you have an IRS tax form W-2 from all of your employers and did you attach Copy B of each to your IRS tax return?
• Did you enter all tax withheld on your IRS tax return?
• Did you attach any IRS tax form 1099s that show tax withheld?

Two of the Most Common Mistakes made by taxapayers each year:

• Did you sign and date the IRS tax return?
  • If it is a joint IRS tax return, did your spouse also sign and date the IRS tax return?
• Did you check your arithmetic – both addition and subtraction?

Always ask your accountant, or inquire of the IRS, regarding any questions you might have about the new tax changes. Source: IRS.gov and TurboTax.com

Fire Insurance: Are you really covered?
In the aftermath of one of the largest, most destructive fires in California’s history, one critical question looms for all those whose homes were either totally ravaged by the firestorm or otherwise damaged: Will the insurance carried by those homeowners reimburse them for the full cost of rebuilding?

What about You?
Insurance experts report that many homeowners today are woefully underinsured for several reasons, but the two primary reasons are: 1. insurance agencies fail to update homeowners policies, and , 2. homeowners neglect to pupdate their coverage to keep pace with increasing costs of labor, construction materials, and replacement of personal household goods and possessions.

Moreover, many insurance companies have stopped writing policies that guarantee to cover the entire cost of rebuilding a fire-damaged home. Unfortunately, many of the affected California homeowners are now in dire economic straits as they struggle to rebuild their homes, buy necessities, and continue to pay off their remaining mortgages.

Can you Afford to Rebuild?
All across the country, the per-foot costs to rebuild a home from the ground up have soared far above the replacement cost limits in most policies. Depending on where you live, rebuilding costs can run anywhere from $50 per square foot, to $300 or more.

If your house burned to the ground, could you afford to replace it? Do your insurance premiums automatically increase to keep up with the rising costs of replacement value? Here are some useful tips to determine if you coverage is adequate.

If you own a much older home and want to change your home replacement policy, you are advised to explore extra coverage for upgrades that might require extensive work to bring your rebuilt house into compliance with new building codes.

What WAS in Your House?
When homeowners who are victimized by a fire that consumed their house are asked to make a list of all their household assets, most fail to remember everything that had been destroyed. Today is never too late to take the necessary steps to ensure you claim all you might have lost if you ever had to face this type of misfortune.

Where do you start? Well, every bank has fireproof safety boxes for rent, and they should be considered a vital safekeeping area for your important papers, records, jewelry, family treasures, etc.

Be sure to keep a household inventory among you important papers. If there is a fire in your home, or even a burglary, you inventory records will not only help you remember what has to be replaced, but how much each item is worth. An inventory may also show that you need to increase you insurance now that some of your possessions are worth more than you first bought them.

Beginning An Inventory Simply using a pad and pen, make you inventory by starting just inside the doorway of each room

• List each item, its cost, date of purchase, and the cost of replacement.
• Include model numbers, brand names, and a general description.
• Take video or still pictures of each room in you house from several angles.
• Keep the videotape and/or pictures in you sage or safe deposit box for protection.
• Take inventory of your garage where expensive tools and sporting equipment might be stored. The same holds true of your basement and attic.

Be sure to update your inventory every six months or so, adding new purchases and adjusting replacement costs.

Stay safe. Be secure!

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