Q:i am considering buying a barratts home and want to know if the garden will be laid to lawn or if i have to pay extra

For the right price, I'm sure the builder will do any kind of landscaping you want.

Q:My friend father died and asked that his ashes be spread into the garden of his home. He had cancer and will this pollute this garden? The bible speaks of ashes to ashes and dust to dust, so will this affect the growing of the plants or fruits?

Translation: He wants to return back home to the origin of which he was created. By nature mankind was created and by nature he wishes to return back home to it. Fulfill his dreams and your friend will receive many future blessings. In the long term, it can even spare your friend from burning in the fires of Gahenna, that is, if such exists. I am not here to preach or represent any religious practices. What you believe in is your choice. But if I were your friend, I'd fulfill his dreams and respect his desires. At the end of the day, he is still your friend's father. One last sign of obedience is the least that your friend can offer to this great man, who must have really loved his garden. And fact is, home is where the heart is. That is why we say, Home, sweet, home. Spread and water his ashes into the soil to prevent from blowing astray. (If you live in a climate where the weather is blistering cold and covered with snow, I'd wait 'til the earth softens. Only then will Mother Earth be more prepared to receive him--with her arms, wide-open.) May God Bless you both.

Q:In the Better Homes and Gardens magazine there was a recipe for butterscotch almond bars. It required a cake mix. i was wondering if we just add the cake mix, or follow the directions on the cake mix box as well.

I have not seen the Better Homes article, but from experience with recipes that use cake mix is that you just add the cake mix and disregard the box instructions. The reason some recipes will let you use cake mix is just because all the dry ingredients are already measured and mixed to save you time. Just add wet ingredients, pop in oven and voila! I believe this is true for your situation because your trying to make butterscotch almond bars, not cake with butterscotch and almond on it, so you don't need to follow any cake directions, you just need the goodies already mixed.

Q:Hello and how are you? I am just wondering how I can fix loose cupboard doors onto a cupboard base?A high, double kitchen cabinet. Could I use standard size nails or is it easier to call a professional to do the job, as I already injured my hand attempting to fix this and my hand was pouring with blood from the wood.Please explain and HONEST answers onlyThank you.

If the hinges are loose and the old screws are stripped out,You can remove the old screws,get some wooden toothpicks and white glue,apply some glue to the toothpicks and put into the old holes let dry and reinstall the old screws

Q:I lost my favorite recipe from a cookbook my grandmother gave me. I know the cookbook was Better Homes and Gardens, most likely published in the 1960's as a souvenir edition. The specific recipe was for lasagna on page 166. Does anyone else have the same recipe?

Well, it's page 182 in my mother's old BHG cookbook. I can't tell you what year it's from other than the 50s or 60s because the first few pages are gone and the binder is held together with carton sealing tape! But some of these recipes are the same as in my edition from 1982 and some are totally different so I've kept both books. Lasagne (notice how it's spelled with an e at the end!) 1 pound Italian sausage, bulk pork sausage or ground beef 1 clove garlic, minced 1 Tablespoon chopped parsley 1 Tablespoon basil 1 1/2 teaspoons salt 1 1-pound can (2 cups) tomatoes 2 6-ounce cans (1 1/3 cups) tomato paste 10 ounces lasagne or wide noodles 2 12-ounce cartons (3 cups) large-curd cream-style cottage cheese 2 beaten eggs 2 teaspoons salt 1/2 teaspoon pepper 2 Tablespoons chopped parsley 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese 1 pound Mozzarella cheese, sliced thin Brown meat slowly; spoon off excess fat. Add next 6 ingredients to meat. Simmer, uncovered, till thick, 45 minutes to 1 hour, stirring occasionally. Cook noodles in boiling, salted water till tender; drain; rinse in cold water. Combine cottage cheese and next 5 ingredients. Place half the noodles in 13 x 9 x 2-inch baking dish; spread half the cottage cheese mixture over; add half the Mozzarella cheese and half the meat mixture. Repeat layers. Bake in moderate oven (375 F) 30 minutes. Let stand 10 to 15 minutes before cutting in squares. Makes 12 servings. I sure hope this is what you were looking for after all this typing! Enjoy your lasagna!

Q:my favorite place is staying in my home garden. and you................

Well its my room always.. else if its a gud climate i wud sit in the balcony with all the windows open..

Q:I'm almost 30 and am due with my first child in December. I have worked a fulltime job since I was 17 mostly in nursing. My husband and I decided it would be best if I just stay home with the baby once she is born. My issue is I know I will go stir crzy after a month or so. What are some hobbies I can do at home? PS I can't do any art things(like drawing painting etc.)because I royally suck and can't grow anything so gardening is kind of out

most turn to baking! Join clubs if you can go out, deffo join a playgroup, you'll meet other mums and bubs there. Also try reading more, subscribing to magazines like better homes and gardens for ideas, and learning one player games, sudoku, crosswords, writing, scrapbooking, making clothes, knitting, joining fun websites and yoga groups, home yoga and fitness dvds, get to parks and go out as much as you can, music, charity work, selling cool items from home/markets....

Q:I keep my turtles in a pin next to my vegetable garden and haven't worried about the possibility of getting sick until the recent jalapeno scare.

You say, “Could?” If they are water turtles – and you have fed them raw meat or chicken that was infected with the bacterium – there is a possibility of cross contamination. If they defecate on the soil in which the vegetables are growing – and their stool is contaminated – the possibility exists. Or if there is run-off from the water they swim in – and the water is contaminated – the possibility exists. Or if you use their swimming water (literally their toilet) to water your plants – the possibility exists – IF THERE IS CONTAMINATION from Mr. and Mrs. Sal Monella. If you keep them in a “pen” and they are land turtles you are feeding fruits, vegetables and whatever insects/worms they can find – the chances are highly UNLIKELY and I wouldn’t worry.

Q:I am designing an indoor garden. It will be located in a glass sunroom/conservatory. Unfortunately, most of the books about indoor gardening are about growing plants in pots. I want to create an ACTUAL indoor garden -- lavender, jasmine, ferns, irises -- planted in soil beds. What I want to know is:1. Whether there are any books or websites on the subject.2. Whether the plants I've mentioned would grow in good indoor conditions, and any other plant suggestions (preferably plants with flowers!)

You do not say where you live,so you may need to do some of this research virtually: The Brooklyn Botanic Garden has had gardens under glass for decades (100yrs?) Also look at Longwood Gardens= also extensive indoor gardens for eons. Doris Duke's home -ditto check the butterfly house at the Baltimore Acquarium Also, there is a long tradition of indoor gardens in England- they grew everything and there are lots of books on these. As far as the plants you name, jasmine, ferns- absolutely no problem- they are in every glass house I've ever been The essentials for most lavenders is poor soil, relatively dry, lots of light. I have grown all of these indoors, just home garden- windowsill or plant lights The iris I grow are the tall bearded - delicious fragrance-like candy- I would think with enough light and dark, they should grow well. With flowers: name it: roses if you have the room or are willing to work at the pruning (we have grown roses in a bed i brick high on concrete!! The rose has thrived for 50 years! Lilies, marigolds, zinnias, cosmos, bulbs: hyacinth, daffodil, crocus etc IF you have a cold frame to give these a winter conditioning; salvias-the flowering decent kind, The list is virtually endless, depending on the climate conditions you are going to create: temperature, humidity, direction the space faces, number of hours of daily sun. One crucial factor is air circulation; a ceiling fan may be enough, depending on how much natural ventilation there is in the space. Also, consider using plant lights to help meet your light conditions if there is a plant you really want to grow that needs more that the available light. Catalog your conditions, and then compare these to the needs of plants you like Sites: the victory garden is reliable as will be your state cooperative extension assoc. {the spots you can't see on this response is me drooling over the opportunity you have. Hope you have a grand adventure.}

Q:I was informed today that a law was just passed that people cannot have there own gardens and raise they're own food, is this true? if so could you please post a link or something so i can have more info?

They are referring to Senate Bill 510. It would give the government greater power to regulate the food industry. Hopefully this would eliminate problems with salmonella in peanut butter. The vote is supposed to be this evening. Because people who advocate for local food as opposed to corporate food are concerned that it might put small farms out of business, an agreement has been reached that the Tester amendment will be included in the bill. The amendment will then have to be included in the House bill, which passed in July. The Tester amendment will exempt farms that sell directly to consumers, retail stores, and restaurants within their state or within 275 miles (whichever is smaller) and make less than $500,000 a year from regulation. Sustainable food advocates support this amendment. It was supposed to be voted on this evening, but I still can't find that this has yet occurred. From my point of view it is essential that the Tester amendment be included. (Jon Tester is a Senator from Montana who is sponsoring the amendment.) The bill without the Tester amendment would not make it illegal to grow your own food, but it would subject you to many regulations if you wanted to sell it at a farmer's market, perhaps making it impossible for you to do so.