May 2010 Newsletter


WOW! What a project we have underway in Carmel!
It’s the Carmel Trifecta—a new home exterior, new kitchen and new fitness room.

The homeowners scratched their heads and did their homework—renovate or move? Bottom line… they like the neighborhood and area. Their kids grew up in the house and like coming home with their families. That's why the homeowner's liked the idea of a three-pronged renovation designed to get the house from good to great. Pull up a chair and watch the progress in this–the first in an SGR project series.

Sundown Gardens
This month we welcome a new SGR partner—Sundown Gardens.
Located in Carmel, Sundown Gardens is known for visionary landscape design. Check out their garden center for flowers, plants and more. Lawn and garden need some work? Ask about their complete range
of services from landscape design to grounds keeping and irrigation services. Joe Russ is simply a great guy with great ideas. And he’s given us some awesome tips for lawn and garden ideas.

Work from a plan
Design and plan your landscape project. Don’t jump right in. It leads to a better looking, more functional project. It also saves time, money and frustration. Patios, decks, and outdoor kitchen areas are an extension of your interior spaces. Consider how projects and plantings affect or complement access in/out of your home. Think about the functional use and how these spaces look/feel from inside/out and outside/in. When choosing materials consider how they complement or contrast your house’s exterior. Consider materials, color, texture and flow.

Plan your plantings, too.
Pick plants appropriately by considering size and impact for the desired location. Consider sun or shade: remember south or west exposure for sun plants and north or east for shade plants. Indiana plantings typically mean finding hardy plants that thrive in clay soils and tolerate colder winters and hot/humid summers. Think about location and plant needs: wet or well drained. For a full, lush look, group plantings, but remember proper spacing for growth. Are you thinking I’ve got no time or space for plantings? Then consider a hanging basket for color and interest.

Water with care.
Overwatering or under watering can be key to a plant thriving or fading. The most efficient way to water is to lay the end of the garden hose at the base of the plant, toward the middle of the root ball and let the water slowly trickle into the dirt. This limits water contact with the foliage, branches and the stem, cuts down on water evaporation and provides the plant with a slow, deep soaking of H2O. Before watering, check if the plant is actually in need. Is the soil in root ball is hard, hot and/or dry? If so, give it some water. And don’t forget to adjust the watering time and amount appropriate based on the size of the plant.

Who doesn’t like a tax credit?!
Therma Tru Doors has one-stop tax energy tax credit information gathered and organized in
one place to make it easy for anyone to see what’s available and how to take advantage of it. Check it out. www.myenergytax.com

Racing into Memorial Day Weekend
Look for Steve Gray Renovations race weekend. We’re sponsoring a pre-race party with Hofmeister Personal Jewelers Friday, May 28 from 5 to 9 p.m. Should be fun! Selections, designs and budgets are second to none. Looking for some cool jewelry? I can make a personal introduction to owner Carter Hofmesiter for you. Click here to view the invite.

We hope you found our newsletter helpful. Click here to view all of the previous editions. If you have any questions, please email us, we will be happy to assist and respond.

Thanks!
Steve Gray