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Dawn King

Expert Guru
Dawn King has a B.A. degree in Early Childhood Education and began teaching Pre-K right out of college. For five years she taught Pre-K and Kindergarten for a privately owned school. Though she loves children she felt a longing to try something else. She has always been an avid writer and gardner. Her passion for gardening and writing is what led her to try her hand at freelance writing. Dawn has spent several years researching residential gardening and related materials. She works part time maintaining gardens for neighbors, friends and family. Her duties include, mulching, composing, and caring for flowers, vegetables bushes such as rose, azaleas, hydrangeas and rhododendrons. She has help countless friends, neighbors and family members in choosing the proper plants, bushes, trees and flowers for their landscapes and gardens. She also has extensive knowledge on the proper use of gardening tools and equipment.

Her work as an expert gardener has given her the opportunity to interact and discuss gardening issues and ideas with over a dozen other avid gardeners and gardening professionals. She is a member of Trees Across Raleigh which is a non-profit corporation dedicated to planting trees in public rights-of-way, along public medians and in public parks for the benefit of all Raleigh residents.

Gardening is a dominant subject in Dawn's life since she was a young girl. She comes from a long line of farmers and gardeners and has had many opportunities to work closely with others in this profession. The opportunity to work closely with gardeners and professionals in this field has allowed for many avenues to open up to her. She is quoted as saying that, "The garden is a mirror of the heart."




10 Tips from Dawn King

Three Useful Organic Gardening Ideas for your Home Garden

1. When buying plants for your landscape, select well-adapted plant types for your soil, temperature range, and sun or shade exposure.

2. Natural fertilizers, compost and organic materials encourage native earthworms. Earthworms are nature's tillers and soil conditioners, and manufacture great fertilizer.
3.Plant trees! They increase in value as they grow and save energy and money by shading our houses in the summer, and letting the sun shine through for warmth in the winter

Summer Care for the Perennial Garden

1. The single most important type of pruning is deadheading spent flowers. This will extend the blooming period of your perennials and encourage additional growth for new buds.How far below the spent flower you prune depends upon the growth habit of the plant. Look on the stem below the spent flower and see if there are any new flower buds forming. If there are, prune to just above the first flower bud below the dead flower. This works well for Black-eyed Susan, Shasta Daisy and the Purple Coneflower When you see no more flower buds on a stem on these plants, cut the stem to the ground. This will promote lush new growth at the base of the plant.

Freezing Fruits

1. To freeze berries: Wash berries and pat dry. Spread in a single layer on a tray, cover with plastic wrap and freeze until solid. Pack frozen fruit into zip lock bags, taking care to remove air from the bags. Freeze for up to 1 year.

How to Keep Mice at Bay...

Cotton balls soaked in mint oil work great to keep mice at bay. I put a few mint cotton balls in empty pill/advil conainers placing them in corners of cabinets or drawers in the kitchen. Guess it would work in any area of the home.

Homemade Sugar Scrub

1. To get unbelieveable soft skin all you need is the following ingredients:

Grapefruit Sugar Scrub

Ingredients:
1-1/2 cups white table sugar
8 drops grapefruit essential oil
2 drops red food coloring (optional)
1/4 cup jojoba oil

Instructions:
Place sugar into a large bowl and stir to break up any clumps. Add the essential oil. Add one or two drops of red food coloring if you'd like it pink! Mix very well to make sure the color is evenly dispersed. Add the jojoba oil , a little at a time, stirring after each addition. Mix well and the pour into clean container. To use, stand in the tub or shower and massage the sugar scrub onto your skin from head to toe. Rinse. Inhale. Smile.

Five Ways you can Live Green

1.)If you have water your lawn and garden, water in the morning or at night to prevent evaporation. One inch of water a week is better than several short showers.

2.)Plant native plants in your garden - native plants require a lot less water and maintenance than introduced species.

3.)Grow ground cover or use mulch in your garden to cut down on water use (it also helps control weeds and enriches the soil).

4.)Spend an evening outdoors weeding your lawn by hand.

5.)Put a barrel under your eavestrough downspout to catch water when it rains. You can use this to water indoor plants, your garden and wash your car.


Testing & Applying Foundations

Always test foundation on your jaw line not on the inside of your wrist or back of your hand. It is best to view it under different light settings. Foundation should match the color of your neck. The best way to apply your foundation is with a make-up brush, this is what professional make-up artist prefer. However, if you would like a sheer coverage a apply your foundation with a cosmetic sponge. Be sure to open your mouth when applying foundation to expose the neck area and eliminate an obvious line at the jaw line.

Garden Accents turn your Garden from Ho Hum to Spectacular

When incorporating a garden into your landscaping plans, it’s important to plan not only for the types of plants, flowers and vegetation that you want to in your garden, but you should plan for garden accent ideas as well.

There are various garden accent ideas such as,wishing wells, garden arbors, and even storage sheds are among the most popular and traditional garden accent ideas. Garden arbors are a great way to blend a useful garden accent into your landscaping plan. Numerous trailing plants such as roses, honeysuckle and grape vines will make use of a cleverly placed garden accent such as an arbor. In addition, a garden arbor can create a restful retreat from the hot summer sun. When considering where to place your garden arbor, think about locations that form garden entrances, as well as privacy and sun screens near decks and patios.

Gazebos serve as a popular garden accent idea. A gazebo can range from small and quaint to a structure that is large enough to provide an outdoor dining space.

While you might not think of a shed as a garden accent idea, when you choose the right style to blend with your garden theme, a shed can be a beautiful addition to any garden. Consider options that resemble small English cottages or enclosed gazebos. The rest of the world will never guess that this charming addition hides your gardening tools and equipment.

A nice accent in cottage and other informal styled gardens is a wishing well, which can either be completely functional or simply a visual garden accent addition.

Other garden accent ideas include planters such as Grecian urns, clay pots, and other interesting containers. Just about anything that will hold soil will work as a planter for your garden - the options are unlimited!





Oil Paint Supplies

If you like tp paint wtih oil paint you will find even more painting tools for oil painting, that help you to express your own individual style. Shops for art supply offer round brushes, "cats' tongues", and flat oil brushes for traditional techniques. Many painters prefer to work with putty knives and spatulas. These tools allow to bring the paint very thick from the painter's palette on the canvas panel. To create colored structures on canvas or wood, a putty knife is one of the greatest art craft materials.

Bed Preparation

Bed preparation can be done anytime, although it's most often done in late winter to early spring. That's when the soil is most in need of enrichment with compost, the mulch needs to be replenished and the weeds need to be eliminated.After removing everything that you don't want growing in your garden beds, it's time to renovate. That means pulling back the existing mulch with a steel garden rake and adding a one- to two-inch layer of compost. Then put the old mulch back in place, and add a fresh layer of mulch to a depth of about three inches. Now your garden beds are ready to plant.