Home and Garden
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Inspection report is not a repair list for sellersSep 30, 2016 6:00 am - Q. Before buying our home, we hired a home inspector to make a complete repair list for the sellers. He did a very thorough job, but the inspection was a waste of money ...
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Does the value of your home affect how you vote?Sep 30, 2016 6:00 am - WASHINGTON - Do home values have any significance when it comes to presidential elections? Not directly. But indirectly they are manifestations of economic growth, unemp...
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Make Island Lake beautiful, plant an irisSep 29, 2016 1:00 am - A botanical beautification project in Island Lake gets under way Saturday - but it's already more successful than organizers envisioned. When village officials announced...
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Carpet rockers are late-Victorian vintageSep 25, 2016 7:01 am - Q. I would like to know the value and vintage of these rocking chairs. They have been in my family for almost 100 years. They are made of walnut and were originally co...
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Create a spring garden now by planting flowering bulbsSep 25, 2016 7:01 am - Q: Every year I plant tulips, daffodils and hyacinths. What else is there that is suitable in the bulb world? A: Bulbs may come in nondescript plain brown packaging but ...
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Perennials offer colorful fall foliageSep 25, 2016 7:00 am - Trees and shrubs garner high praise for fall color. Brilliantly colored leaves in autumnal shades glow against clear blue skies. Perennials are most often chosen for the...
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Oak Park couple create haven in Central IllinoisSep 25, 2016 7:00 am - A pristine, 620-acre Central Illinois getaway with 11 private lakes reflects a Chicago-area financier's outdoor sporting interests. His wife (who works in the medical fi...
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Plant the vetch now; tomatoes will thank you laterSep 24, 2016 8:00 am - Everybody loves tomatoes, but they're not the easiest vegetable to grow. They get diseases, leaves drop, fruits rot and gardeners will always listen to a new tip for gro...
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Plant now for spring bulbsSep 24, 2016 7:00 am - It's nearly that time of year when gardeners think of spring - of planting bulbs that are going to bloom then. Bulbs are "pre-packaged" flowers, so a green thumb isn't n...
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Garden preparations begin now before the snow fliesSep 24, 2016 7:00 am - Spring-flowering bulbs generally do not perform well in heavy wet soils. Summer snowflake (Leucojum aestivum) has some tolerance for more moist conditions so try this on...