As residents of McCauley for a number of years, and owners of a vintage house with some outside growing space, we have had a huge learning curve. We have researched and experimented with how to improve the comfort and efficiency of our home without breaking the bank; how to improve the livability of our yard with little cost; how to help spruce up our neck of the woods with individual and group efforts; and, how to access the many services the City provides to assist residents. The list is long and we don’t pretend to have all the solutions. Our hope in writing this column is to share what our experiences have been, and perhaps to help give a glimpse into a solution for a problem that has been nagging you.

INSIDE
Yes folks, summer is almost over and it’s time to start thinking of ways to ready your house for, brace yourself, WINTER. The most important way to help your house heat efficiently is with a clean furnace. Make an appointment sooner than later (they get busy) with a reputable furnace specialist and get them to come out and clean your ducts, change your filter (should be done every couple of months), and clean the mechanical parts. All winter long, your furnace will love you for it and so will you.

OUT
September is not only a time for garden clean up, it’s also the time to plant spring bulbs! Crocuses, daffodils, and tulips are some welcome early arrivals each spring. Look for some of the sunniest south-exposed places in your yard to plant bulbs for the earliest appearance. Bulbs require little care and bring much beauty, year after year.

Another bulb that we’ve learned to love in our garden is garlic. We first tried planting garlic five years ago, using hard-neck garlic bought from a farmer. Each year in September we have planted the descendants of this garlic, and it has consistently grown beautiful bulbs of garlic through the following season.

Here are some tips for growing your own succulent garlic. Buy recently harvested garlic if you can, ideally from a farmer’s market or some other local source so you know it’s fresh and Alberta-hardy. Each bulb of garlic consists of many cloves. Separate the cloves and choose the largest, keeping the papery covering intact. Prepare your soil by loosening it and adding compost, if you have some. Plant the garlic cloves about two inches deep and eight inches apart, with the point up. Cover them with soil, press down gently, then add a thick layer of leaves on top as protective mulch for the winter. This mulch can be cleared away in the spring to allow the sun to warm the soil and start the garlic growing early. It should emerge sometime in April, and grow through the summer until it’s ready for harvest in August.