When should I start vegetable and flower seeds for spring planting? Should I use lights or is putting them in a windowsill all right?

Considering how much money we have invested in our garden tools, I am sure it would be amazing how many shovels, trowels, and garden forks there are hanging in garages adorned with rust and dirt clods or, worse yet, left out in the garden! Armed with a few supplies such as wire brushes in a couple sizes, sandpaper, oil, a metal file, honing stone, and paper towels, you can keep your tool collection in top shape. Purchase a toolbox to keep your tool care supplies in so they will be close at hand, thus more tempting to use. Keeping your tools clean and sharp is important for maintaining your investment and preserving your favorite tools. Different tools require different types of maintenance. For an excellent article that covers care instructions for a variety of tools, go to this Do-It-Yourself Network Web site: http://www.diynet.com/DIY/article/0,2058,2541,00.html

If the leaves are just getting brown around the edges and there are no other symptoms, chances are they are just reacting to the low humidity levels we experience indoors in the winter. When you begin heating your home in the winter, the humidity drops quite dramatically. Houseplant foliage sometimes respond to this drop in humidity by turning brown starting from the tips of the leaves. Once they get used to the new humidity levels, they normally settle, albeit more dismally, into winter like the rest of us. A simple approach to raising the humidity level for your plant is to keep it watered when it feels dry. Set the plant on a tray of pebbles and keep a small amount of water in the tray, remembering that the pot should not be immersed in the water itself. Another idea you could try is grouping your houseplants together, provided you have an appropriate space. For houseplants that require more humidity, you could try using a terrarium. I have a small collection of miniature African violets and in the winter or when I am on vacation, I use the plastic containers that cakes come in from the grocery store to place the plants.

Amaryllis (Hippeastrum) is one of my favorite plants to have blooming during the winter. I think they make especially great gifts for older people that may be homebound or in a nursing home situation. At my son’s school, the school library always has an amaryllis bulb growing in the winter. Watching these rather alien-looking bulbs turn into breathtaking blooms is exciting for any age. With some care, you should be able to get your amaryllis to bloom for you next year as well. After the plant is finished flowering, remove the dead flowers but not the stalk. Let the stalk shrivel up and then remove it. Continue to water the plant, fertilize it every month or so, and keep it in a sunny window. When all danger of frost is past, you can bring the amaryllis outside and sink the pot in a shady garden area. You will need to reduce watering in the late summer until the leaves turn yellow. At this time you can trim the leaves and keep the potted bulb in a cool but frost-free location. In about three months, you can bring the bulb back inside and begin watering it again. It will take roughly six weeks for the bulb to bloom after you begin to water.

When you have mowed your lawn for the last time, drain the mower according to the manufacturer’s instructions (if this can be done easily). Store the gasoline in an approved storage container or use it in your car. Any remaining gasoline may be removed by running the mower engine until it stops. Adding a small amount of oil through the spark plug port will also help your mower get through the winter. Alternatively, minimize the air space in the tank by filling your mower with a gasoline and gasoline stabilizer combination. Run the engine for a short time to draw the stabilized fuel into the carburetor. Close the engine’s valves. In hand-pull starter mowers, this is done by simply pulling the hand-pull until you feel resistance. A vapor barrier can be made with aluminum foil secured with tape. Lastly, store your mower in a cool, dry, well-ventilated place out of direct sunlight. Sources: Dwane Miller, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Monroe Co. Ext. Times, Nov./Dec. 2000, Vol. 2000, No. 6