Homes

Dear Tony: Our strata council has sent a notice out to owners advising we are limited to only one small elections window sign shown from our strata lots and no signs on common property.

Long-time Islanders will remember Bo Mearns as the greatest horsewoman this region ever produced — a Hall of Fame champion known as the equestrian queen of Canada in the 1970s and 1980s.

Dear Helen: I fear more hot, dry summers lie ahead. Are there ways for home gardeners to mitigate the effects of these challenging conditions? I’m not ready to give up on growing favourite flowers, fruits and vegetables. P.H.

It feels like a Mediterranean summer, probably because the garden’s abundance, and the heat, remind me of living on the south coast of France and on a Greek island.

Dear Tony: Our townhouse complex in Burnaby recently hired a roofing company to correct a number of leaks that were identified in the early spring storms.

Dear Helen: I managed to grow decent garlic bulbs last year and again this year, and would like to use some of the bulbs for planting in the fall.

Heavily featured in neighbourhood news this summer has been a pair of hawks nesting in a giant fir tree across the street from my home.

Dear Tony: Our strata corporation had a flood in our 52-unit building almost two years ago. It was caused by an owner who renovated their kitchen and resulted from a breached water line from mounting screws.

Dear Helen: In a long, deep, narrow box planter in my greenhouse there is a series of tall, large-leaved cucumber vines that began flagging last month. The leaves are slightly yellowed and limp.

Despite the relentless tedium of trying to keep plantings alive in the heat and drought, the garden has been delivering a delectable array of tasty snacks.