LOVE turkey. But after a sandwich, some soup and a couple of turkey tacos, not so much. Want something quick and tasty for dinner? Try this!
Ham it up, Sweetie!
1 bone-in fully cooked ham steak ( about 2 lbs)
5 tablespoons of butter
5 tablespoons of brown sugar
In a large skillet over medium heat, quickly brown the ham steak on both sides. Remove ham.
In the same skillet, melt the butter; stir in brown sugar. Return the ham to skillet; cook until heated through, turning often. Serve warm with yams and a salad.
Holiday Leftovers Casserole
4 rolls or biscuits sliced in half
1 cup chopped leftover ham or turkey
½ cup eggnog
4 eggs beaten
6 slices Swiss cheese or other sliced cheese
Layer the leftover rolls in the bottom of a buttered 10” X 10” pan. Layer the shredded meat on top of the rolls. Mix the eggnog and beaten eggs together and pour over the top of the rolls. Layer the sliced cheese on top of that and bake in a 350 degree oven for 25 to 30 minutes and serve. Could be breakfast OR dinner!
So not too far from us on Main street just west of the Super Target, there has been a big building going up. Conversation every time we go by is ” Gee, it sure is going up fast!” “Gosh, I wonder what it is?” . No signs or anything, just a number to call for info and of course, being crazy busy, have not called.
When I went to pick up hubby from the repair shop, he said to me “Hey! Guess what is going in at that new building on Main!?”
Me: “I don’t know, what?”
He: (with a giant grin on his face) “A Tractor Supply!”
Me: “No. You are just joking.”
He: ” No, I swear!”
So we go by on the way home. YUP! a Tractor supply!! Whooeeee!
Everyone else wants a Trader Joes. But my hubby is in Hog Heaven! Life in a small town…
By Cindy Poore
So you have already checked for leaks and looked at your water use for excess watering and corrected overspray and run off when possible. What next? I want to landscape, how is this going to affect me? I have already sunk a bundle into new landscaping, how will this affect me? When can I water now with the new restrictions? What will happen to my plants and lawn? How will this affect me?
Questions, questions, questions. I have fielded lots of questions mostly about the new water restrictions. I will try to explain best as I can.
Every city is different. They can set their own rules to meet the state’s mandate. Some are very reasonable. Some seem to be much more restrictive. I think a lot of the information out there is not clear at all and there is no one person disseminating the information so you get “interpretation” depending on who you talk to.
Apple Valley’s watering restrictions are basically 10 minutes per station per day for three days a week even or odd depending on your address.
When I called to check, there was confusion on exactly how this is applied to all systems. What about large rotor heads that cover a very large area and take time to cover their full area (versus a fixed head) or very low volume heads like mp rotators that need to run for long periods to apply the correct amount of water? I have been told there is no exception for these types of heads in the new regulations. This means people with these types of heads cannot run their systems long enough to keep their lawns watered.
Apparently, in Apple Valley (or at least the person I spoke with) drip is not covered by the time limit nor restricted to the watering days. I could not find where it says this in writing so this could be a moving target. Watering hot spots with a shut off nozzle was said to be ok.
Hesperia. According to your city website, you have one of the most relaxed regulations with the city asking you not water two of the seven days a week and conserve the other five days. Hey! I can do that!!
Helendale/Silverlakes They have also taken a grown up approach and have asked their residents to conserve on their own by 25%. Being a small, tight community where everyone knows everyone, this should work.
Victorville. Victorville’s restrictions are the one city whose written rules are very clear. They do not limit the time a station can run. Running drip every day is ok with them. (But NOT if you know my point of view. That shouldn’t be necessary) They limit the days with an even odd system, ask for no run off with sensible use, and they offer properties with more than 10 stations to submit water reduction plans. In addition, they make it clear that you can hand water your brown spots on other days with a use of a shut off nozzle. The rules are totally clear and workable. They live in the real world.
Wrightwood Golden State Water Company customers… one word UGH!
You are in stage 1 as of July 1st. You are only allowed two days a week watering outdoors WITH SPRAY HEADS and no run off. No run off is hard as Wrightwood is pretty much all on a slope. Drip irrigation is NOT restricted to the two days but can be watered all 7 days if needed. It requests that you only water for 15 minutes a station. You CAN hand water dry spots as well I am told.
So Wrightwoodians (or others) might augment their lawn watering with drip to keep their lawns going on other days and still stay in compliance. How? Perhaps a soaker hose laid out strategically could do the trick. Conservation is still in order, but thankfully there are no emergency surcharges in Stage 1 here.
Rules (and interpretations) could change but be smart with your watering and remember we are all in this together.
Call Us if You Need Help. We Are Here to Help You With All Your Landscape Needs
(760) 868-6104
### July Stuff
Normally, I don’t recommend fertilizing in July. It just encourages the bad grasses, but so many of the lawns are just looking so bad with all the water restrictions. We’ve been putting a 9-9-9 with Iron fertilizer on those lawns that look bad but that are still able to water enough to keep the lawn going. This low nitrogen 9-9-9 with iron will promote green without a lot of unnecessary growth and help the roots to withstand the stress of drought and it wont burn your lawn. Fertilize lightly and water in soon after and your lawn will thank you.
Got Iris? This is the best month to divide them and replant elsewhere in your garden or share the love. Remember to dig up and divide with a good amount of iris tuber, preferably with roots on it. Trim the greenery of all but about 3 inches and let the plant sit out for a couple of days to heal off the tuber where you separated it before planting in it’s new home.
This is a good month to visit the local farmer’s markets as the produce is fantastic, prices are great and it’s a nice way to spend some time. Wrightwood’s is on Fridays 4 pm to 7 pm and the Victor Valley College Farmer’s market is on Thursdays 8-noon. Phelan Farmer’s market is Mondays from 2 to 6 pm.
Remember….
These are the days we were
dreaming about in February!
By Cindy Poore
Look at that. Just by changing one letter we went from a resolution to a revolution. BIG difference. A new day, a new month, a new year is always nice. A fresh start to the rest of your life. And how better to kick off your new life but with a tiny change.
We usually make big promises to ourselves at the start of the year that often get dropped in a few weeks because the promise was too big. How about if you start small?
Some times the smallest thing can make a BIG difference and they are easier to keep going. I started a few years ago with quitting soda and look where it took me. That small thing let to other things and it led me to a new and healthier life of exercising and eating real food, feeling great and looking a lot better too. A real revolution in my life.
Sometimes we let barriers we build for ourselves get in our way and keep us from moving forward. X has to happen before we can do Y and so on. Just ask yourself is that really true? What would happen if it didn’t go down that way. You just may make a small change that changes your whole world. Think about it and make 2015 your Revolution to your new world.
Cold enough for ya?
Yup it finally got cold, AND we had rain and some got snow. Now everybody is scurrying from the car to the house with nary a glance to the outdoors. Just get inside and get warm! But your yard and garden still need your help.
When it is cold like this, you need to keep an eye on the weather. When we get rain and or snow you do not have to water your garden so make sure your sprinkler clock is shut off for a bit until it needs watering again. Yea!!
How much moisture fell from the sky will determine when you need to water again. I’ve said this before about watering in the winter. Some people just turn off the clocks in November and don’t turn them on again until April and others never touch their clocks at all and their watering system continues as it did in the summer. Neither approach is correct.
Changeable weather conditions here can make scheduling watering during the winter months difficult because so much needs to be taken into consideration. Soil type, precipitation or lack thereof and freeze conditions make your scheduling life difficult.
To help properly know when to water, new sprinkler controllers known as “smart controllers” are helping people better know when to water. Smart controllers use weather stations or soil moisture sensors to determine when and how long water. These new irrigation controllers take the guess work out of watering your landscape. Call us if you need advice on when and how to water. If you feel like one of the “smart controllers might be a good fit for your needs, call us we can install that for you as well.
(760) 868-6104
Pluviophile : (n) a lover of rain; someone who finds joy and peace of mind during rainy days
Got fruit or nut trees? NOW is the time to prevent lots of problems with a dormant oil application. Dormant oil is an organic method for preventing overwintering insects from ruining your fruit this summer. For apples and pears with coddling moth this is the least expensive treatment option that will give good results.
Not much can easily eradicate the coddling moth once your trees are infested. But you can minimize them with good orchard sanitation by pruning your trees now and removing all tree litter under your trees and applying a good dormant oil application now.
Other Coddling moth treatments require repeat applications of pricey organic treatments with perfect timing of stage of development and degree days. Dormant oil is the next best option. Treat with dormant oil and inspect your fruit when it is forming. Thin your fruit and bag each fruit with paper bags or nylon sacks (made from old pantyhose). Dispose of any fruit (off site) that you find with the worms as soon as you find them.
With the rain comes the weeds!
You will see the green coming to the valley in the weeks ahead. The lovely rain we had is all that is needed to wake up the weed seeds that have been lying dormant until now. Give us a call and we can spray to kill those weeds, or better yet, call us now and we will put down a weed preventer with the weed killer and you will not see weeds for months to come!
Plan and organize your veggie garden and order the seeds you will want to grow this spring. Try something different this year, even if only in a pot!
Time to prune those rose bushes! January is the typical month to do the annual severe pruning for your rose bushes to develop strong, healthy canes and beautiful roses come this spring. We can do it for you. Call us.
Need help with scheduling, pest or weed issues or removing your water thirsty grass? Give us a call!
We Are Here to Help You With
All Your Landscape Needs
(760) 868-6104
By Cindy Poore
So just out of the clear blue sky comes a shocker! Someone, you have counted on to be there and just took for granted is suddenly not there. Leaving you with a big hole in your life. Things can change in an instant. Sometimes, you get a second chance. Sometimes not. Far too often I am complacent about the now.
You are with someone. Someone you just met, or someone you love and you are not really THERE. You are thinking ahead of what they are saying, trying to formulate what YOU are going to say next. Not really listening because of course, you already know what they are going to say, right? I am so guilty of this.
That is what I mean. The most important thing you can do today and everyday is to really listen to the person you are talking to. Don’t just jump in with a comment because you don’t want to loose the thought. Be in the now with them and be thoughtful of what they are saying before formulating a response.
This is my New Me Resolution. I don’t have to wait for January 1. I can start NOW. Be patient with me. It will take practice.
- Staying Home May 31, 2020Staying home has new meaning since the tragic and crazy world of COVID-19. While most are keeping a low profile at home, Perfection Landscape knows that we are essential for helping our clients care for their home environments. We continue to do maintenance for our regular and new clients keeping with social distancing guidelines for […]
- Weeds are Back! March 10, 2018Is your yard Exploding with weeds ? You may think a few weeds here or there aren’t much to worry about, but did you know most weeds are capable of producing over a thousand seeds each? Rain and the warmer weather that will follow will make conditions just right for hose little land mines […]