chicago tribune home and garden articles

Hooked-up plumbing in a kitchen-and-bath showroom is nothing new. The gleaming Kohler Store in Burr Ridge, for instance, has a handful of tubs and sinks that can be turned on and off. What is unheard of is a near fully operational showroom that invites customers to test out the goods — as in: take showers, soak in tubs, and flush toilets.

She came, she saw, she shopped ... and showed you how to try it too. But who is this Thrift Girl who was featured in the July 13 issue of Home&Garden, anyway? Since you asked, we'll tell: Assistant Home&Garden Editor Cindy Dampier is the girl behind the thrifty goodness, and she'll be returning periodically in TG guise to offer you a peek at a great source or a thrift-find makeover.

How many grilling parties will you attend this summer where the chicken is dry and the pork flavorless? I must confess — I've often been the cook of such casualties. A pity really — especially when the solution merely requires water and salt: brining.

Primp your containers regularly, deadheading spent flowers and cutting back stems that have grown leggy on annuals. Unless you have very sharp fingernails to pinch, make a clean cut with clippers or scissors. Cut back to just above the node where a leaf is attached. That's where the cut is most likely to stimulate new growth and more flowers. And don't forget to water; July is our hottest month.

It's not too late to start a garden. Plant yummy veggies now, and reap fall's bountiful harvest.

T he dog days of summer have yet to arrive, but it's time to start planning for fall gardens. Really..

SOMERVILLE — Most of Noel and Holly Getch Clarke's 1890s Victorian is a colorful tangle of art and furniture, with a motley array of rescued pets loitering about the rooms. Walls and doorways are adorned with Gothic moldings that were added sometime during the 1930s by an eccentric, creative and very handy former occupant.

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Here are some useful sources of garden information.

Q : My purple and white columbine is being attacked by leaf miners. I sprayed Neem oil without any apparent success. Is there anything I can do to prevent them from seriously damaging my plant next year?

Kick back and sit a spell on summer's perfect retreat

As good as summertime in Chicago is, the best of it isn't necessarily viewed from the lawn at Ravinia, or audible from Pritzker Pavilion at Millennium Park, or even soaked up at North Avenue Beach. The cream of Chicago's summer might be right on your own front porch.