Prepare for Fall
As some of you have already noticed, Fall has begun. BUT it is not to late to get started taking care of business! Armed with the proper equipment and your yard will shine like never before!
Thatchmaster Shrub Rake 24″- $13.99
It’s your standard rake, but hey, everyone’s gotta have one, so you might as well get a good one!
The Original 7 x 5 EZ Leaf Hauler- $28.95
The EZ Leaf Hauler Holds Up To 5 Wheel Barrows Full of Leaves!
Features:
- Sturdy 12″ x 24″ sides to hold large volumes of leaves
- 35 square feet of surface area - 7′ x 5′
- Constructed out of rugged woven tarp material for extra durability
- Multiple handles for easy sliding
- Includes two attached ground stakes for windy days
- Folds compactly for storage
Benefits:
- Better than a wheel barrow because it is easier to load and it can hold up to 5 times more.
- Better than a blower because it is quieter, cheaper and requires less maintenance.
- Better than a tarp because it has sides to hold more leaves, handles for dragging, and stakes that hold it in place on windy days.
Liquid Gypsum- RTS Quart by Soil Logic – $14.99
Liquid Gypsum is a faster, longer lasting way to soften hard soil, break up clay, and remove the salts from plant root zones. Safe for all turf grasses and landscapes to promote healthy green growth.
Benefits of Liquid Gypsum Soil Conditioner:
- Treats 1,000 square feet
- Softens hard and clay soils
- Removes damaging salts
- Improves poor drainage
- Fosters deep strong root growth
- Environmentally safe
- No tilling required
- Easy to apply water soluble formula
- Non toxic
- Safe for use on all grasses, plants, trees, and orchards
Also available in Quart and Gallon Concentrate
Additional Benefits:
- Liquid “Gypsum” reacts with clay in soil to improve water penetration and reduce run-off.
- Roots grow deeper into soil treated with Liquid “Gypsum.” As soil is loosened, pore spaces are created which hold water and nutrients, and allow roots to penetrate.
- A crumbly soil mulch, much like large grains of sand, become visible after the use of Liquid “Gypsum” and acts like other mulches to retain soil moisture below the surface.
- Turf and other ground-covers grown in soil treated with Liquid “Gypsum” are less likely to form thatch. Roots growing above hard, compacted soil tend to create thatch because it is easier than trying to penetrate such hard soil.
- Seedlings sprout more easily in soil treated with Liquid “Gypsum”.
- Less runoff on sloped areas.
- Where salts are a soil problem (saline) treatment of the soil with Liquid “Gypsum” will improve the ability of the soil to be irrigated to carry away (leach) salts away from the root zone.
Contents of Liquid Gypsum:
- 25% Calcium Chloride Solution
- 1% Polyacrylamide
- 1% Wetting Agent
- 73% Inert Ingredients (Water)
Now you’ll be all set for fall and your lawn will be in tip top shape! For other lawn care products, visit yardlover.com!
Don’t Fall Behind, Gear Up For Spring Now!
Check out the 2011 Yardlover.com Fall Bulb Catalog now, and stay a step ahead this planting season!
Essential Collegiate Gear
Now that school has started back up for everyone, I’m sure that lots of you have been going to school-related activities. Some recent events you may have gone to include (but are not limited to): tailgates, pep rallies, concerts, picnics, volleyball games, festivals, fairs, and of course football games. If you haven’t, well then you’re just lame.
In order to get you more prepared for these activities and others, I have come up with a list of essentials that you could use at a number of these listed events. Please pay close attention:
Collegiate Grill Cover- $57.95
I’m sure lots of you have cooked out recently, or at least within the past couple months. Keeping your grill in perfect condition is essential to perfecting your steaks, hamburgers, hotdogs or other meat of choice. It’s important to keep the grill protected from all weather elements and other outdoor conditions that cause damage to the grill.
What’s better than a nice, hot, juicy steak on a lovely fall day filled with football and food? Nothing. Except a nice, hot, juicy steak branded with your favorite team logo for all the world to see on a lovely fall day filled with football and food. Now that’s living.
Collegiate Welcome Mat- $32.95
So maybe you can’t make it to the game this weekend. That’s ok, because now you’ve been given the perfect opportunity to have the most awesome football-watching party kn0wn to mankind. Because the party has moved to your house, you need to make sure all of your guests are comfortable and treated like royalty. As soon as they arrive at your doorstep, show them how courteous you are by welcoming them into your home in style.
Virginia Diner Collegiate Peanut Tin, 16 oz- $7.95
Now whether the party is at your house or at a tailgate in a parking lot, it’s important to keep the overall theme obvious and consistent. You can’t just stop at the decorations and accessories. You have to go all out! One subtle item that makes a big impact and is sure to impress your guests with your sense of team spirit is a Peanut Tin from the Virginia Diner supporting your team all the way!
In case you were wondering about all the other completely necessary items you absolutely have to have in order to throw the best tailgate/football party anyone has ever seen, here is a list to help you out (and every single one can be personalized with a Virginia Tech logo!!).
Collegiate Metro Insulated Basket- $44.95
Fiero Collegiate BBQ Tool Set- $71.95
Collegiate 3-piece BBQ Tool and Tote Set- $32.95
Collegiate Zuma Picnic Backpack- $38.95
Collegiate Malibu Insulated Picnic Tote- $85.95
Home-made slow-drip system
To make your own version of the Treegator:
For larger plants, shrubs and trees, take an empty soda bottle, poke plenty of holes throughout the body and bury up to the neck in the ground. Keep the opening visible and uncovered and fill with water. This will deliver a slow drip to your plants without the hassle of evaporation or run-off. Put the cap back on the bottle to prevent bugs, rocks and other debris from falling in. When it gets empty, just use a hose or watering can to fill it back up.
For smaller plants and even houseplants, use a small plastic juice bottle and do the same thing.
*The reason we tell you to do it this way, rather than burying a bottle upside down with the water coming out the top is because it looks nicer and is more hidden from view as well as being easier to fill up without making any sort of mess.
You can do this:
But I would recommend doing it our way:
This way, all you can see is the bottle cap, so not only does it looks much cleaner and simpler than the first image, but the slow drip is being dispersed throughout the entire plant because the bottle is completely buried, as opposed to only dripping where the few holes are located on the bottom of the first bottle. Burying the entire bottle ensures that the water will disperse throughout the plant, providing a deep watering. When you want to refill the bottle, simply unscrew the lid, pour the water in and put the cap back on. Easy as pie!
Rock the night away
One of the most important key features to having a successful outdoor space where people can gather and spend time together is seating. If you don’t have a place for your guests to sit, you won’t have many more guests. Let’s just eliminate that horrifying possibility right now and provide some great seating choices that everyone can enjoy.
As you probably guessed based on the title, I am promoting rockers here. Why? Because they’re a classic, that’s why. I mean, rocking chairs are to outdoor seating as baseball is to the American public. They just go together.
Rocking chairs are so classic that they have come to represent many different genres of people and society. When I first think of a rocking chair, I pretty much imagine the picture that is shown on Wikipedia’s page for “Rocking Chair” with an old man/woman sitting in it on/near the porch just rocking away.
I then imagine a family vacation we took to West Virginia were we stayed in a cabin in a State Park and how I sat in a double rocking chair with my granddaddy. Then I imagine his old rocking chair in our basement. That leads to the thought of the rows and rows of rockers lined up in front of every Cracker Barrel you’ll go to.
Other images that come to mind include squeaking floorboards in an old haunted house with voices and empty chairs rocking back and forth. In a completely different direction is the picture of a parent rocking their little baby to sleep.
Or there is a more beachy-type that often comes to mind. The type that just seems to fit in with the sand and the water in the background.
Obviously rocking chairs present many different images, and I’m sure you all have came up with ones other than what I mentioned. Like I said, they’re classic, in many different ways.
Whatever image comes to mind when you hear the words rocking chair, you know what I’m talking about. Experience one for yourself, let whatever guests you have left try one out, get one for decoration. The reason doesn’t matter as much as the fact that you have one or not.
My favorites:
Fly fly fireflies
Snapple fact #878: Only male fireflies can fly
Now, we do not sell actually fireflies, but, due to my excellent skills in the art of researching and coming up with things that correspond with one another, even if it may be a bit of a stretch, I have found a couple things that you might enjoy that I can fit with this wonderfully interesting Snapple fact.
1) The first firefly-related thing is the only thing that comes up on our website when you search the word “firefly” and that would be Firefly Solar Garden Stakes. They are little garden stakes powered by the sun and made into the shapes of different flowers, including Poppy and Calla Lily. Very cute, very eco-friendly. Just like fireflies! You’ll love them!
2) This next item is not really firefly-related unless you actually have fireflies nearby. Canning jars are perfect for catching fireflies during the early hours of the summer evenings. Running around with my cousins and catching fireflies in jars is probably one of my favorite childhood memories. I know that you would not want to deny your children that opportunity, and if you were denied, you’re never too old to chase some bugs around in circles.
3) This product simply reminds me of fireflies and if you look at the picture you’ll see why. The Aurora Glow Clear Solar String Lights look like little fireflies in the dark, except obviously fireflies aren’t blue, but that’s okay. Again, these are solar-powered, making them eco-friendly while putting off a nice soft glow.
