After reading a few green blogs about gardening we are trying again this year for a vegetable garden. Last year we started a few hundred vegetable seedlings only to have them consumed by our goats a couple of days after we planted them. This year we decided to plant our vegetables in above ground planters so we can control their growing environment. In the past we used chemicals on our lawn and we do not want to risk any of the chemicals coming in contact we our food. Since we have switched over to organic fertilizers we will wait a few years before we use our own soil for gardening. Hopefully by next year we will be able to add our own compost to our potting soil.

I got the idea of planting an above ground garden from http://blog.food2gro.com and I would recommend that you take a look at Jubie’s site since she has mastered this art. I cheated and bought my soil and my plants were already started. Before you write me off as a complete cheater, check back in a few days when I publish my article about starting our flower garden from seeds.

So far I have found these benefits:

1. You can start your garden earlier in the year. If you are expecting a frost you can bring your garden inside. Generally we do not plant anything before mother’s day and even then we risk a frost.

2. You can control you soil without risking your food to any chemicals in your yard.

3. You can move your plants so the smaller ones are not buried in the shadows of the larger plants.

4. You can move your plants in and out of the sun if you are bored.

5. You regain your yard space once your planting season is done.

Spring is the perfect time of year to inspect your exterior trim for rot and decay. Most people have rot issues where their garage door trim comes in contact with the ground and around exterior doors and windows. Replacing wet or rotten trim will reduce the damage to your home and it will take away an invite to ants and bugs. Using a cellular PVC product like Azek allows you to install a product that will last a lifetime!

Exterior trim is generally made of pine which is a soft pourous wood that loves to hold water. We all know what happens when wood and water mix, in most cases you will have mold or mildew. Bugs also love wet exterior wood because they can nest or eat your home without having to travel far for a drink. Once the bugs begin to nest they generally call their family and friend and before you know it, your house is party central! You are left with two options, one is to tackle the project on your own or you can hire a home improvement contractor.

If you want to take on the project on your own you will need to decide on what type of wood you will replace the rotten wood with. Most home centers sell finger jointed pre-primed 1 x4×16’s- 1×10x16’s and all sizes in between, this product is referred to as PFJ (primed finger jointed). While the price of PFJ is tempting, the final project outcome is generally a disappointment;

1. With most PFJ wood you can see the finger joints (lines every 6-18″). Adding a nice glossy paint really makes these lines show up.

2. Under the coat of primer is pine and you can have rot issues down the road.

3. The finger joints can come apart when the glue breaks down.

Another option is using a harder more dense wood than pine. Fir is an excellent choice if you don’t mind painting it every few years. When my company removes old fir trimmed doors and windows we seldom find major rot or decay issues.

My solution is to replace exterior trim with a cellular PVC trim like Azek. Over the past few years my company has switched over to using Azek trim for almost all of our products without one call back. Azek exterior trim cuts like wood, you can use a router to shape it and it can be heated and molded into different shapes. One of the best features is that their trim is available in 18′ lenghts so your project will have less seams. With Azek vinyl trim you do not have to paint since the trim already comes with a white finish. If you want to paint a cellular PVC trim product you should sand it first so the paint has a surface to bond to, a 220 grit sand paper works fine. If you want a wood grain finish check out Koma, they offer a similar product line.

Since you are going to spend the time or money replacing your exterior trim you might as well find a product that will last you a lifetime. Granted you will have to pay almost twice the money up front for the PVC trim but the investment will pay you back over time. I feel that a green home improvement is one that you will never have to do again!