Homes

Our gardening columnist answers reader questions on cooling weather and tomatoes, dealing with moth infestations, and planting garlic

Dear Tony: At our recent AGM our owners approved a special levy for balcony repairs with a specified contractor who had bid on the project.

On the gloriously sunny Sunday of the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, I was back in the garden after a week dealing with a muscle-ache type of flu and another week indulging in a follow-up time of rest.

Dear Helen: I placed two potted poinsettias outside for the summer, where they flourished. Now they’re back indoors, what conditions and care do they need? Will they form coloured bracts again in December? C.S.

Dear Tony: We bought our townhouse in 2014. At the time, it was a new development in Burnaby and the owner developer filed a rental disclosure document that exempted all strata lots, 1-68, from rental bylaws until June 1, 2064.

Moving to different houses 15 times during their marriage had an unexpected payoff for a Shawnigan Lake couple, who eventually built their retirement home on a gorgeous, lakefront property.

Residents of Victoria can determine the amount of sunshine almost any building in the city receives over the course of a year with the newly announced Solar Rooftop Tool.

Perhaps it was the challenges of this year’s growing season that made me so acutely conscious of and thankful for the garden’s gifts and the many pleasures they bring.

Dear Tony: What happens when there are funds left over from a special levy? I sold my unit six months ago and was informed at the time by council, and it was posted in the minutes, that the balance in the special levy fund for the roof was less than

Dear Helen: The dahlias that I planted have done very well. My question: Is it advisable to cut them down early in the season to promote shorter, bushier plants rather than tall ones? H.B.