Don’t Fall for False Spring…It’s a Trap!!!
If you’ve been in Texas long enough you know that mid-February, almost every year, there is a glimmer of hope that winter is over and that we are fully into the Spring season - time for plants, refreshing the back yard, and breaking out the shorts!! But not so fast…. this is only a mirage and will leave you hurt if you fall for it. “Well that’s an awfully pessimistic view to have, Matt!” - I can hear you say it, but I’ve lost too many vegetable plants and I’ve been caught too often in shorts when I needed to keep the jackets out. “Then what am I supposed to do for the next few weeks?” Great question and I’m glad you asked, or I asked for you, or maybe we asked together… but anyways, here are a few ideas:
Start planning, but not planting, for flowers, shrubs, and gardens:
You can find very insightful resources online and through social media so use this time to put a thorough plan together. A personal plant favorite is Neil Sperry who wrote “Lone Star Gardening” and gives you not only the basics for how to plan and plant successfully but will dig into the details of what plants go well together and how to strategize your garden layout. Another great option is the classic “The Old Farmer’s Almanac” or simply navigate to their website here for planting dates, information about specific vegetables and general helpful wisdom!
Spring isn’t only for plants - think now about those home improvement ideas:
Maybe this is the year for a pool, an extended patio, a deck, or a pergola - or perhaps all of it?!? Getting started now will allow you to get as much as possible out of the cool Spring days instead of waiting for the sweltering Summer heat! Now is the time to connect with contractors or if you are a DIYer to find plans. Make sure as you plan to keep an eye on how the sun moves across your space, how those dry summer winds or cold north winds blow in, and how you make all of the enhancements flow together. A great place to start is by using a single general contractor to manage the whole project or at least a good designer to layout the entire plan if you need to do it piece by piece.
Feeling overwhelmed? Let’s just start by clearing out closets and helping those who need it:
If moving outside isn’t quite on the horizon for you this is a great opportunity to clean out closets and dressers, to purge some unused toys, and to simplify if you can. But let’s not just chunk all those items you’ve collected! Rather, let’s find a place to donate them so that we can help get items and goods to those in need. Around Rockwall you can donate to:
Helping Hands at 950 Williams Street Building B in Rockwall, TX
Goodwill at 2855 Ridge Road in Rockwall, TX
You can also find a number of pickup options online - too many to list here!
Now that the closets are clean, the house could use some paint, couldn’t it?
Decluttering and helping those in need is a great thing…but now that you can see the walls you’re thinking it’s time to paint, right? What color, what sheen, what brush, is this a roller or sprayer, or brush application? Before you get that far you should probably be honest about whether or not you should, or even, can paint - I know I can’t. If you are realizing you need help then it’s important to find the right painter for the job - contact us and we can give you a few referrals. If you’re going to tackle the job yourself make sure to spend time thinking through paint selections, necessary materials and your process. There might be nothing worse than running out of paint with only a little bit of the job left or needing a brush when all you have is a roller!!
Confused entirely with what to do, or what this all means?
In that case just click here and we’ll set up some time to chat and get you started. We’re “hands in the dirt and paint on our shirt” people so we’ll be ready when you call! If you’re just looking for our preferred vendors feel free to click here.
