By Cindy Hadish/The Gazette CEDAR RAPIDS — A fuchsia bougainvillea blooms near banana trees ripe with fruit, while the fragrant scent of gardenias perfume the air. The tropical ambience isn’t set in the south, but inside the Noelridge Greenhouse, which today celebrates 40 years of providing a colorful, warm respite in northeast Cedar Rapids. “The [...]
continue »
Candy Sagon/The Washington Post Home decorator Jennifer Schweikert, of Just My Style By JMS in Burke, Va., has worked with real estate agents and clients to stage or prepare homes for sale. “People don’t realize that they become accustomed to their home’s odor,” she says. “It smells differently, though, to potential buyers entering the house [...]
continue »
Cedar Rapids is featured as a bright spot on the nation’s economic landscape in the April 2 edition of Time magazine. The magazine highlights Cedar Rapids and 10 other cities in a infographic labeled, ‘Boomtown USA: A look at growing cities and what’s fueling their growth.” The graphic was a counterpoint to the magazine’s [...]
continue »
CEDAR RAPIDS — While record March warmth has put a spring in the step of most Iowans, precocious plant development has caused problems for specialty crop growers. At Hughes Nursery and Landscaping in southwest Cedar Rapids, the early budding and leafing of shrubs and trees has quickly closed the annual window of opportunity for digging [...]
continue »
IOWA CITY – Urban chicken advocates have hatched a discussion about legalizing hens in city limits. “We’re just trying to get the idea out there,” said Shannon Gassman, 25, a web and graphic designer who moved to Iowa City two years ago. Iowa City Citizens for the Legalization of Urban Chicken Keeping, or I-CLUCK, [...]
continue »
Daytime isn’t the only time your home and landscaping can have a wonderful curb appeal. It can pack a “wow” factor at night, too, with well-placed outdoor lighting. “It doesn’t take a ton of lights to make a statement,” says Adam Boysen of King’s Material in Cedar Rapids. “A few can give enough of a [...]
continue »
Thinking about creating an outdoor oasis where you can enjoy the spring and summer days and evenings? Now’s the time to get started – especially if your dream space includes a new deck. Create a distinctive design Start thinking about the style, shape and color scheme of your outdoor space. Are your tastes country cottage [...]
continue »
Spring’s new growth and warm sunshine provide inspiration for renewal in our lives. That can apply to the home, too. Pack away the heavy textures and colors of winter in favor of breezy fabrics and fun decor that inspire a fresh feeling in your house. Here are some ideas on how to capture the optimistic [...]
continue »
By Denise Ellsworth/Akron Beacon Journal Gather your seeds and supplies: It’s nearly prime time to start seeds for this year’s garden. Most seeds are best planted somewhere around six to eight weeks before the last spring frost, which is usually somewhere around Mother’s Day in mid-May. Nothing is more disappointing than beginning the garden season [...]
continue »
