Be Judicious When it Comes to Storage Solutions Not every furniture item is equal in a minimalist apartment. “Storage needs to be really evaluated when looking at furniture pieces,” designer Linda Hayslett explains. “Each piece will need to have more than one duty.” And at the same time, those pieces doing double duty should still appear sleek, Hayslett notes. “For example, an ottoman needs to have storage in it, but not look like it’s a clunky piece that can house things....

Estimated Humidifier Filter Life Manufacturers generally recommend wick-type portable humidifier filters be changed after one to three months, or even earlier. There are very good reasons to clean or change humidifier filters: for example, as a humidifier operates, it pulls in air and returns it to that room as either a cool or warm mist, depending on the type of humidifier you are using. During this process, dust and other particles become permanently trapped in the filter and are not recycled to the room....

Types of Fertilizers You Can Use Indoors There are many types of fertilizers that will work for an indoor herb garden. For indoor feeding, use a water-soluble fertilizer or one that can be dissolved in water. These can include: A packaged granular that you measure and dissolve in water before applying. A fish emulsion that is concentrated and must be added to water before applying. How to Apply Fertilizers No matter which type of fertilizer you choose, you will be applying it at one-quarter of the recommended rate listed on the package....

3 Ways to Quickly Locate the Water Shut Off Valve Find the Water Shut Off Valve on the Inside Perimeter Search for your house’s main water shut off valve on the inside of the home. Typically, it will be located on the perimeter of the house, since that is where the water first enters your house. Also, stay on the side of the house that is facing the street. Your water main begins at the street and usually heads in a straight line to your home....

Some species of earwigs are capable of causing extensive damage to plants, while other species can cause minor irritation and abrasions when they pinch, but overall they perform (mostly) beneficial functions. If you’re noticing earwigs inside your home, where are they coming from? How do you get rid of them? Using a natural pesticide like diatomaceous earth is an effective way to kill earwigs in your home and garden, but it can also cause harm to beneficial insects—and it won’t work in wet conditions....

Centipedes and millipedes are primarily outdoor creatures that subsist on decaying plant material (millipedes) or small insects and other creatures (centipedes). Neither of these creatures causes damage or disease, nor do they nest and breed indoors. If you find them indoors, it is usually because they’ve simply wandered in from a nearby woody environment. They do not damage food, plants, furniture, or buildings as other more harmful pests do, such as cockroaches, rodents, and flies....

Identifying Euonymus Scale Armored scale lives under a protective covering and feeds on plant juices. Euonymus scale appears on the stems and leaves of infested plants as tiny white lines, about 1/16 inch long, or as slightly larger, oyster-shell-like brown lumps. Heavily infested plants may be coated with white lines of scale extending along stems and leaf veins. This coating of white lines is the most easily identifiable symptom of infestation....

Selecting a Planting Site Select a planting site with loose, well-draining soil. Make sure it’s free of rocks that can inhibit root growth and free of weeds that can compete for nutrients and moisture. Growing in a container is an option, although it is not recommended because a container does not provide optimal conditions for the roots to develop. Spacing, Depth, and Support Sow the seeds about 1/2 inch deep. Add roughly two to three seeds per inch in rows that are 1....

Throughout their hardiness zone, cannas can remain in the ground as true perennials. In colder climates, the rhizomes must be dug in the fall and stored over the winter, then replanted in the spring. Best planted from rhizomes in the early spring, cannas can take a few weeks to sprout. After sprouting, they grow at a fairly quick pace and typically flower in their first year. Canna leaves have a waxy coating that helps resist fungal diseases....