How to Grow Cacti and Succulents—Green Thumb Not Required!

Equal parts attractive and easy to care for, cacti and succulents are just the thing to to dress up a sunny windowsill. Learn how to keep your cacti and succulents beautiful and healthy with these tips—green thumb not required!

  • Place your plant where it will get a lot of bright light, such as a sunny windowsill. Cacti and succulents grow best with four to six hours of sunlight a day.
  • Cacti do best in porous pots, which tend to allow the potting soil to dry quickly. Glazed pots don’t dry out as fast, which can lead to root rot. Opt for terra cotta pots.
  • A good soil mix is also important. You want equal parts of coarse sand and all-purpose potting mix.
  • The worst thing you could do for a cactus is to water it on a regular basis. You only need to water them when the soil is bone-dry. Sometimes this occurs once a week or sometimes it occurs once every three weeks.
  • You should repot your cactus or succulent every three to five years. This involves the removal of most of the soil from the roots and replacing the plant in the same sized pot, or larger if need be.

Cacti And Succulents Inside Your Home [Gardening Know How]
Cultivating Cacti and Succulent Plants [HGTV]
Growing Guide-Cactus [Cactusland]

Super-Simple Fixes for Kitchen Clutter

Out of every room in your home, the kitchen seems to be the space that gets used the most—and it's also the space that's first to attract clutter! Sound like you? Follow these tips to help maintain order in your busy kitchen.

  • Go through your cabinets and donate or toss out the items that are not frequently used. Your main goal is to have only the items that you love and use.
  • Create groups or categories for your items. For example, sort all of your baking items together in one section and your cooking items in another.
  • Use clear containers to store items and place them inside your cabinets. This keeps everything from being scattered all over the place.
  • Place hooks underneath your cabinets to hold mugs or use a stemware rack in the same spot to hold wine glasses. You could also use adhesive hooks inside of your cabinets to hang measuring cups or oven mitts.
  • Use rotating trays in your cabinets to hold oils, vinegars, or spices. You can also use them in your refrigerator for beverages.
  • Use a small bar cart to store some silverware or your coffee pot and mugs.

Organize Your Kitchen Cabinets [Container Store]
10 Kitchen Organization Hacks To Keep Clutter Contained [The Stir]
10 Steps to an Orderly Kitchen [HGTV]

Add a Touch of Summer to Your Rental Home — Here’s How!

Summer is just around the corner, and even in a rental, you can't help but want to make some warm weather improvements to your home. Outdoor space or not, there are a number of ways to add a summer flair to your decor — and these stylish tips will show you how.

  • Let the light in. Take advantage of the brighter sunlight and longer days by making the most out of your home's windows. Replace your heavy winter drapes with light-colored, sheer curtains, and give your windows a good scrubbing inside and out.
  • Mix up your throw pillows. While cozy, rich hued throw pillows are great in the cold of winter, they feel stuffy and too dark once the summer rolls around. Store your usual throw pillows in plastic bags during the summer months and replace them with pillows that are bright, colorful and even a bit eclectic.
  • Keep the cold beverages on hand. Whether you frequently host guests on a porch or patio or you simply want to create a cool, relaxing place to hang out inside of your home, creating a well-curated bar cart is a must for summer entertaining. Stock yours with ice buckets, various types of glasses, cocktail napkins and your favorite libations (alcoholic or otherwise).
  • Fill your place with plants. Another great way to take advantage of the summer sunshine is by creating an indoor garden. Hang plants from the ceiling using macrame plant hangers, place them in pots on bright windowsills and even add larger plants to fill empty corners of a room.

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