The leaves are turning – but be under no illusions, this is not autumn | Alys Fowler

Extreme heat has caused trees to shed their leaves early and summer crops to give up. It’s nature’s equivalent of grabbing whatever you can when leaving a burning building

The first cool mornings, the sweet rot of fallen apples, the sight of seed heads – these are all signs that autumn is here. But what happens when it starts coming earlier? When the floor is littered with burnt leaves, when the summer crops give up early and the flowers fade before all the pollinators get their fill? What has happened is a “false” autumn .

The leaves on the ground of your local park and pavements are not autumn leaves, where a deciduous tree has reclaimed as many valuable chemicals as possible from the leaf, so that the colours beneath are exposed, before sending it to ground. The extraction of pigments in a leaf is a slow process that takes trees several weeks, but the blast of extreme heat stole this from the plants and instead they had to slough off resources as they struggled to stay hydrated. These are the leaves we see right now: brown, curled and fried by the sun.

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12 ways to save on gas, groceries, utilities and more

Are the inflation-driven high grocery and gas bills taking a toll on your wallet? Experts share their top money-saving tips.

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How To Make A Shell Door Wreath

Now that summer is coming to an end, you might find yourself with a bucket of collected beach shells and wondering what you should do with them.   This craft tutorial shows you how to take some basic items from the dollar store to create the perfect craft using your collected shells. This door wreath is vibrant and fun and is the perfect way to celebrate summer.  The tutorial comes with step by step photos to guide you along in creating your very own Beach Shell door wreath.  

 

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England’s gardeners to be banned from using peat-based compost

Sale of peat-based compost for use on private gardens and allotments to be outlawed within 18 months

Sales of peat for use on private gardens and allotments will be banned in England from 2024, the government has announced.

Environmental campaigners have long called for stricter laws to restore peatlands.

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Houseplant of the week: English ivy

Bring this fast-growing creeper inside and it will filter the air for you

Why will I love it?
English ivy (Hedera helix) is a modest plant that comes free from any hype. It has a bad rap for being an invasive outdoor plant, a destroyer of ecosystems and brickwork. But it makes a great indoor plant, one that’s good for the ego because it thrives with ease and may end up being a plant you have for life.

Light or shade?
Bright indirect sunlight to shade.

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LADISIC FINE HOMES CUSTOM BUILD

Let's just pretend that it has not been awhile and leave it at that:) Not much going on besides trying to stay focused on work and waiting for something bad to happen....you see I think I might have PTSD. You know the last 3 years have been a little shaky around here so I am not too hopeful that it is over.  In my mind I think it will be something to do with Cami....as she is 9 now. Aren't

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Tired of beige? Designers share their go-to bold paint colors.

Goodbye, neutral walls. These shades of purple, yellow, green, blue and pink will give your room a fresh and unexpected look.

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What to consider — beyond color — when shopping for interior paint

In addition to choosing a color, you also need to identify the best formulation for the room or surface you’re painting, and figure out which sheen to use.

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How to restore a stainless-steel sink

Whether residue or paint caused the problem, it’s easy to remove.

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How a lockdown coping mechanism led to a brighter family home

Colourful zones and retro furniture bring a convivial feel to a 1970s family house in Cheshire

Name just about any colour and you will find it in Jo Glossop’s bright, bold family home in Kelsall, a small village outside Chester. Jo lives here with her husband, James, and their three children, Bella, Annie and Ronnie. The family moved into the 1970s detached property with their first newborn in 2007. “We were looking for a period house with beautiful original features,” Jo recalls, “but we soon realised that we’d get a lot more for our money if we went with this 70s box instead.”

They inherited a disjointed interior that had been heavily influenced by the decorating TV shows of the early 1990s. “There were seahorse stencils everywhere and lots of floral borders – not our taste at all,” says Jo. A few cosmetic updates were made, but the real change came a decade later. “By then, we had three children and were thinking of moving again,” Jo explains. “We put in an offer on a lovely period property in the village, but it fell through. After that, we thought we might as well stay put and extend.”

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Pickled magnolias: spring’s first flowers are edible, with a potent spicy kick

They can be used in place of pickled ginger, dipped in tempura batter and deep fried, or chopped and tossed through salads

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Magnolia flowers are some of the first blossoms to open in the Australian springtime. They bloom before there are leaves on the tree, standing out along the artistically gnarled bare branches.

Originally hailing from the northern hemisphere – particularly east Asia – magnolias prefer a temperate-to-cool climate. In Australia you’ll most often find them thriving in front gardens throughout the southern states. They can be grown in pots but prefer deep, rich and slightly acidic soil.

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No watering required: a drought-resistant garden for a changing climate

Mulch, grasses, gravel … The West Sussex garden created to cope with hotter, drier summers and mild, soggy winters

When garden designer Jane Gates moved out of London to the Sussex countryside in 2015, she fell in love with a traditional black barn conversion, and set about creating her perfect garden around it, inspired by celebrated plantswoman Beth Chatto’s gravel garden in Colchester, Essex. What she didn’t know was just how quickly her dry, drought-resistant garden would become relevant to today’s changing climate.

This area near the south coast has always been one of the hottest and driest parts of the UK. Over the years, Gates has experimented with plants that suit the site. But some of them have also coped well with increasingly challenging conditions – particularly the greater extremes of hotter, drier summers and mild, soggy winters.

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A Mattel style expert answered your questions about interior design’s hottest pink trend, Barbiecore

Mattel's senior vice president, Kim Culmone, joined Jura Koncius to talk about the Barbiecore trend and more.

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How parents can (gently) reclaim part of a grown child’s room

It’s possible to take advantage of the extra space without erasing all signs of the previous occupant.

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Birmingham to bloom into ‘magical’ garden with 11-metre trees

PoliNations urban oasis will focus on city’s stories of migration using vibrancy of plants as a metaphor

Birmingham city centre will be transformed into a “garden of magical proportions” next month as part of a celebration of cultural diversity in the UK through horticulture.

Eleven-metre architectural trees will take over Victoria Square, which will also be filled with thousands of plants grown by more than 1,000 local people.

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National Trust unveils Garden in the Ruins at Nymans in West Sussex

Risen from the ashes of a devastating fire, the new garden pays homage to celebrated set designer Oliver Messel

Seventy-five years after a catastrophic fire destroyed the centrepiece of a grand Sussex house, a garden inspired by one of the 20th century’s leading theatre designers has risen from its ashes.

The Garden in the Ruins at Nymans, a country estate now owned by the National Trust, pays homage to Oliver Messel, who was celebrated for his sumptuous sets and costumes on stage and screen.

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Houseplant of the week: string of pearls

With its graceful trail of spherical leaves, this sweet succulent will thrive with a few bursts of sunlight and partial shade

Why will I love it?
Who can resist this sweet succulent? It grows into a delicate trailing plant with suspended green spherical leaves, earning it its common name of string of pearls.

Light or shade?
Indirect bright light to partial shade.

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* This article was originally published here

Houseplant of the week: string of pearls

With its graceful trail of spherical leaves, this sweet succulent will thrive with a few bursts of sunlight and partial shade

Why will I love it?
Who can resist this sweet succulent? It grows into a delicate trailing plant with suspended green spherical leaves, earning it its common name of string of pearls.

Light or shade?
Indirect bright light to partial shade.

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* This article was originally published here

Why Barbiecore decor is having a hot-pink moment

Barbie has long been an icon of fashion and mod decorating, as well as a symbol of fun. Now, the Dreamhouse look is coming to real homes, and we're here for it.

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Keep it all in. Storage units – in pictures

Thin, tall, tiny: cupboards in all shapes and sizes for the awkward corners of your home

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Thorn in your side? How to avoid the most common garden injuries

Gardening is a healthy pursuit, but it has its risks, from back pain to poisonous plants. Here’s how to stay out of the danger zone

My earliest memory of an accident in the garden came when I was aged four or five, and my parents hired a power scythe to cut the meadow we rented from the church next door. As my dad paused for a second, the rickety old engine coughed, knocking the brake free, and the scythe lurched toward a disobedient child standing where he’d been told not to. I remember my dad shouting at me to move but my little legs were frozen. As it struck, I tumbled in a blur until he lifted me from danger. I’m forever grateful to him for saving all the parts of me that I might not now have.

But not all gardening injuries are of such high drama. Through my 30 years of gardening I’ve had my fair share of cuts and falls. I’m not particularly clumsy – it’s just that bountiful gardens carry bountiful risk, as the 300,000 people a year who go to hospital from gardening injuries can attest. But we must persevere because gardening is good for us, physically and mentally. With that in mind, here are the most common gardening injuries – and how to avoid them.

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A designer took questions on how to create a bedroom your child will love

Designer Mary Jo Major joined Jura Koncius for a chat about decorating kids' bedrooms.

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Warm up to a more colorful home with these tips

Even the most color-shy people don’t have to be banished to a home filled with various shades of beige forever.

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5 ways to spot sick and dangerous trees before they damage your home

When trees are regularly monitored and maintained by professionals, they are less likely to pose a threat.

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Yes, you need to clean the inside of your dishwasher. Here’s how.

A dishwasher can be a godsend. But sometimes the dishwasher itself needs a little cleaning up — by you.

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