Jeff Gaidjiergis, who owns and operates Mr. Scrappy Recycling, shows some of the items he’s collected from residents that are waiting to be broken down and taken to a recycling facility. By Christina Lords

If residents are looking to replace used pots and pans, old garden tools or aging aluminum ladders, Jeff Gaidjiergis will take them all — and then some.

Gaidjiergis, more affectionately known to some Newcastle residents as Mr. Scrappy, said most people have scrap metal, electronic waste and countless other odds and ends items that have been collecting dust around the house and they don’t even know they can be recycled.

“The most asked question I get is, ‘What else do you take?’” he said. “It’s all about just trying to educate people. Everyone of them who asks me that question has stuff stored up that I break down and recycle.”

As people make home improvements or update appliances, Gaidjiergis said many people don’t know where to turn to get rid of their metal and electronic waste or old items.

Mr. Scrappy Recycling can accept any item with metal or electronic components, including TVs, microwaves, computers and computer parts, heaters, industrial equipment, car parts, lawnmowers and more.

Gaidjiergis, a member of the Newcastle Chamber of Commerce, said he has been building a scrap recycling business for the past year by offering to pick up materials from residents’ homes for free.

His business coverage has grown from Everett to Tacoma, and includes residential and commercial pickups.

“Every time I’d go to the dump or just make a trip going to the Dumpster, I’d see all kinds of metal and wire — stuff that just doesn’t go away,” he said. “I always thought that there’s got to be a better way. My main goal now is to keep that stuff out of landfills.”

As more people across the globe become increasingly reliant on electronic products, limiting the amount of those appliances that go into the waste stream will become even more critical, said Rex Young, of Friendly Earth.

Friendly Earth, a nonprofit organization based in Seattle and also a member of the Newcastle Chamber of Commerce, holds several events every month to pick up electronic waste throughout the Seattle area.

Facilitating ways for residents to properly dispose of their ewaste can also eliminate harmful chemicals and hazardous materials from entering the environment and drinking water, Young said.

“A lot of people don’t really know why they need to recycle electronic waste,” he said. “They’re not aware of the contaminants associated with those products and toss them in the garbage.”

All items that are still functional that are picked up by Friendly Earth will be reused if possible. If they can’t be reused, all of the items are processed domestically and won’t be shipped overseas.

“We try to reuse any kind of product we can, because that’s the most obvious and most efficient way to recycle anything,” he said. “Some of the stuff we get is still in great condition. It’s still working, so we can help facilitate finding a new home for it.”

Some of the items donated benefit organizations like area homeless shelters, Young said.

What to know

Learn more about Friendly Earth at www.friendlyearth.org. Make an appointment for Gaidjiergis to pick up scrap metal or electronic items by calling 591-3320. See a list of products he collects at www.scrappyrecycling.com.

The benefits of conifers in winter in particular add to the focal point options in landscapes by adding structure, texture and color with interesting shapes and colors.

Weeping trees are often not very tall. They will usually stay at whatever height the lead is or where the crown is no longer supported and begins to weep downward as they grow.

However, do not underestimate how wide any weeping tree may get, and give them room to fulfill their potential.

The weeping deodora cedar (cedrus deodora pendula) is a striking steel blue that really holds up to strong, bold colors in the landscape. It thrives in the hottest locations as a drought-tolerant tree, with stiff, short needles.

It can make a very creative container display plant for many years as well.

The weeping Eastern white pine (pinus strobus pendula) is a soft-needled conifer that begs you to touch it as you walk by. It has a soft blue-green needle color, and it lends an excellent flair to any style of garden but particularly an Asian or Zen-influenced design where it can shine as a tree that can be near a path or walkway for its tactile quality.

The weeping Norway spruce (picea abies pendula) is an elegant, small-needled tree that has a more stiff structure to its deep-green branching.

This tree adds a graceful waterfall effect in the small garden. It looks particularly nice when the lower branching is allowed to puddle down at the base, like fabric curtains on the floor.

It’s another quite drought- tolerant species once it is established in later years.

The weeping larch (larix pendula) is an excellent example of a conifer with multiseasonal interest.

It is a deciduous conifer, which is hard for people to imagine until they see it in its various stages of development. In spring, it will come out with soft, bright-green needles, while in summer, the needles will turn more of a blue-green. In fall, they will start to turn from bronze to a lovely, rich gold with amber hues before dropping the needles to reveal the tree’s graceful weeping structure for the winter.

Christina Salwitz is a professional landscape designer and nursery consultant at the Newcastle Fruit and Produce stand.

Don’t get me wrong; I’m not moping around, crazy mad about the weather. Every little ray of sunshine and every little tinge of warmth have been appreciated to the max by me. But still, I’m unable to come to grips with the big picture. The issue of global climate change is huge, impacting much more than just gardening, making it hard to comprehend.

When pondering different subject matters for this column I looked at many fall activities, such as planting bulbs, appreciating dahlias or storing fruit. All paled by comparison to the nagging, overwhelming subject of global warming. The receding glaciers, the issue of water supply, unbelievable tornadoes, debilitating droughts, and massive flooding all fit into the picture painted for us by scientists just a few years ago. It appears to be coming true and quickly.

In the past, what did people do when faced with uncertain change? Some of you remember the victory gardens of World War II. It seems to me that a good thing to do now is to be resourceful and self-reliant. This might be one of those times to put our concerns closest to home by planting an edible garden.

You will need good drainage and at least four hours of strong sunshine. Share what you grow with your neighbors. Someone with a big, sunny plot might grow corn. Another person with less exposure could grow potatoes and squash. Maybe someone has an ideal spot for tomatoes. Many different people could grow greens, carrots and radishes.

Know all of your neighbors, even the old ones, and the ones with the screaming kids and barking dogs. Every one of them will have something to share, whether it be baked goods, extra fruit from their trees, canning equipment, quilts and handmade items, hand-me-down children’s clothes, compost and the list goes on. Stories and knowledge can be shared, so that everyone in your sphere benefits, and no one is left uncared for — so very important in uncertain times.

Plant that fall garden, and then do me a favor. Go out and get yourself some bulbs to plant this fall. Common ones are daffodils, iris, crocus, tulips and hyacinths. Plant them in well-drained soil and sunshine where you can see them from your window. Protect the tulips bulbs from squirrels with chicken wire baskets you can make up yourself.

If you do that now, come next spring you will be unsinkable. Not even rain, snow, sleet or Jeff Renner will keep you down. You will be up and focused on the thrill and hope you see in those early spring flowers. Just do it.

What to know

Master gardening clinics are over for the year. You can still reach master gardeners through the Center for Urban Horticulture 206-685-5104 and online at www.kingcountymg.org.

Jane Garrison is a local landscape architect and master gardener who gardens in glacial till on the plateau.

Apartments, condominiums, balconies or small-scale patios are all viable locations for growing many edibles in containers. As long as you can find a small spot of sun for the bulk of the day, you can grow quite a harvest. Choosing plants that are nutritious, delicious and beautiful is the very best way to maximize your limited space, whether it’s in a window box or several large containers.

Herbs like lemon thyme and chamomile add interesting foliage interest and texture. Contributed

A number of edibles that are highly ornamental also create horticultural drama. By adding some of your favorite ornamental annuals or perennials to your container designs, you can have the best of all worlds in one square-footage-challenged garden.

If you decide you want to grow tomatoes in containers this season, try under planting your tomato with trailing million bells or calibrichoa and sweet potato vine. The only limit to what you can grow with edibles is your imagination.

Alternatively, you might try a blueberry bush with some trailing annuals, such as nemesia or verbena. Add in some herbs like lemon thyme and chamomile for added foliage interest and texture.

Strawberries make great container plants, too. Try a hanging basket or a half wall planter and add some lobelia for a powerful combination!

Artichoke or rhubarb can be dramatic and bountiful in a container. Add some ornamental grasses for textural contrast with those big leaves, some fancy geraniums and some edible flowers, such as violas or nasturtium, for a long-lasting display that’s yummy, too!

Climbing peas can be a unique centerpiece in a container when you grow them up some twisted will branches. At the base, heuchera and nemesia cranberry, play nicely with the silvery pea foliage.

Before you plant your container edibles and ornamentals, here are the top five questions you should ask yourself:

1. What do I like to eat?

2. How much care will my containers need weekly?

3. How much light do I have for ripening and good pollination?

4. How many containers do I need/want?

5. How much should I plant for a good harvest?

Your skilled nursery person can help you design a container with the best fruit, herb and vegetable selections that are appropriate for your setting, maintenance and appetite.

Email Christina Salwitz at personalgardencoach@comcast.net. Comment at www.newcastle-news.com.

Most homes built in the past 30 years or so do not need a retrofit to hold steady in earthquakes, but older homes may need some foundation tune-ups. If the foundation is not secured to the rest of the structure, major damage can result from the ground shaking.

The earthquake in Japan — plus major temblors in New Zealand, Chile and Haiti in the past year — has renewed the focus on seismic safety at home.

“When the earth starts shaking sideways, the foundation moves with the earth,” Sound Seismic co-owner Leif Jackson said. “This big, massive object is not going to immediately move with the foundation. It’s going to kind of lag behind, and it’s going to lag behind when that foundation oscillates back in the opposite direction. So, the house and the foundation get out of synch, and it can get jolted off of the foundation.”

Though most homeowners can take some small steps to reduce earthquake risks, older homes make for the likeliest candidates for a seismic retrofit, due to the adoption of modern building codes from the mid-1970s onward.

Jackson and brother Erik started the Seattle-based company in 1999, before the 2001 Nisqually earthquake reminded people about the risk in the region. Sound Seismic conducts retrofits throughout Western Washington each year, including a handful in Issaquah.

In a seismic retrofit, contractors brace the cripple wall, a short stud wall extending from the top of the foundation upward to support the floor. Because the cripple wall is constructed to support weight from above, the side-to-side movement in earthquakes can cause the wall to topple. Sound Seismic and other retrofit contractors brace the cripple wall.

Now, back to the ABCs.

Contractors attach the floor of a house to the braced cripple wall, use plywood to brace the cripple wall and then bolt, or connect, the braced cripple wall to the foundation.

“Certainly, homes built in the ’50s or earlier, they won’t have plywood, they won’t have anchor bolts, they won’t have anything, so they are absolutely candidates for a retrofit,” Jackson said.

Disaster serves as stark reminder

The scenes of destruction from Japan — and the inherent seismic risk in the Pacific Northwest — caused calls to Sound Seismic to increase tenfold since the March 11 disaster.

The most common question from potential customers is about cost. The price tag varies based on the home, although the project is less expensive to conduct in crawlspaces (about to $4,000 to $6,000) and unfinished basements (about to $5,000 to $8,000) than finished basements (about $8,000 to $15,000).

In Newcastle and unincorporated King County, earthquake retrofits require building permits.

Chimneys also merit special attention during a seismic retrofit. Many chimneys failed in the 2001 Nisqually earthquake, though numerous collapses left a mess rather than destruction.

“Most of them, fortunately, fell away from houses and landed in the yards instead of on and going through the roof,” Jackson said.

Homebuilders in the Pacific Northwest also use materials designed to ride out tremors.

“Our wood-framed houses are probably the No. 1 best-performing structure in earthquakes,” Jackson said. “The wood has a lot of give. It will bend before it breaks, and all those nails and all that wood fiber just gives it some flexibility. What that means is, your house is probably not going to come down in a heap.”

The seismic risk in East King County is real. Newcastle rests near the Seattle Fault, a shallow seismic zone stretched along the interstate from Puget Sound and east through lakes Washington and Sammamish.

Many seismic-retrofit practices and techniques come from earthquake-prone California.

“Everything we do — all of the methods that we use, and the science and engineering — we borrowed from building codes and requirements in California, because they’ve been kind enough to be guinea pigs for us,” Jackson said. “They’ve done the work and they’ve had it tested, and they’ve figured out how to improve it and had that tested. We just get to reap all of the rewards.”

Seismic safety tips

Inside a home, many injuries from earthquakes result from people running around as the ground shakes. They fall down, run into furniture, step on broken glass or take hits from falling objects. In and near older buildings especially, a much higher likelihood of broken windows, falling bricks and other dangerous debris exists.

The local American Red Cross chapter offers simple tips for residents to prepare for earthquakes:

• Bolt and brace water heaters and gas appliances to wall studs. Bolt bookcases, china cabinets and other tall pieces of furniture to wall studs. Brace overhead light fixtures.
• Hang heavy items, such as pictures and mirrors, away from beds, couches and anywhere people sleep or sit.
• Install strong latches or bolts on cabinets. Place large or heavy items in cabinets closest to the floor.
• Learn how to shut off the gas valves in your home, and keep a wrench handy for use.
• Learn about your area’s seismic building standards and land-use codes before you start construction.

What to know
Newcastle homeowners interested in a seismic retrofit can call the city Community Development department at 649-4444. Homeowners in unincorporated King County can call the Department of Development and Environmental Services at 206-296-6600.

Perhaps the endless rainy winters have left an unexpected pond in your backyard where you wanted a cactus. Or maybe it is your neighbor’s small forest of evergreen conifers casting deep, dry shade on your side of the fence.

Let’s take a look at a few solutions for some of our area’s most common gardening challenges.

Deer

There are a lot of hungry deer in Newcastle. They will eat practically any plant, or at least try it once. And if you plant any of their favorites, such as hostas, roses or tulips, you might as well put out a neon “All You Can Eat Buffet” sign.

And, for heaven’s sake, please stop feeding your deer emerald arborvitaes. Try Degroot’s spire arborvitae or Pacific wax myrtle instead. Although there are no truly deer proof plants, several have proven to be consistently left alone. Other deer-resistant plants include:

• Boxwood
• Leucothoe
• Juniper
• Mahonia
• Sedum
• Pieris japonica
• Japanese holly
• Viburnum
• Sambucus

Many ornamental grasses

Strong tasting herbs, such as lavender, rosemary and thyme

Wascally wabbits

Fencing may be the only way to keep that tenacious Peter Rabbit away from your garden patch, but planting unpalatable plants may be easier. Hungry bunnies tend to dislike prickly, rough and fuzzy textured leaves. They also tend to dislike the same strong herbs that deer won’t eat. All of the following rabbit-resistant plants are also deer resistant:

• Astilbe
• Iris
• Lamb’s ears
• Peony
• Salvia
• Veronica
• Achillea (yarrow)
• Perovskia (Russian sage)

• Euphorbia
• Yucca

Dry shade under evergreen trees

This is typically the toughest spot in the garden. It is difficult to establish plants under conifers, as the soil is dry, there is not enough sunlight and accumulating needles create very acidic conditions. If the area in question is on the north side of these trees, decorative mulch and garden gnomes might be your best option.

Planting on the southwest side, however, has the advantage of more sunlight and rain. Preparing the soil by adding compost will also help. Watering during the first growing season is a must.

That said, the following plants stand the best chance for success in deep, dry shade:

• Epimedium
• Sarcoccocca
• Taxus (yew)
• Helleborus
• Geranium macrorhizzum
• Asarum (wild ginger)

Dicentra formosa (Western bleeding heart)

Acuba japonica

Buxus sempervirens

Gaultheria shallon (salal)

Wet winter soil

This is a problem with several newer homes in our area. As topsoils are scraped away to level building sites, compacted clay may be left behind, which holds too much water in winter and not enough water in summer.

This area requires a plant that will tolerate both extremes. Standing water spells certain death for many plants. There are, however, a few beauties that do not seem to mind at all. Those with * will even tolerate some standing water.

Betula nigra (river birch) *

Betula jaquemontii (whitebarked Himalayan birch) *

Pinus contorta var. contorta

Japanese barberry

Pacific wax myrtle

Vine maple

Ninebark

Acorus “ogon” *

Western sword fern

Lobelia cardinalis (cardinal flower) *

Redtwig and redosier dogwood *

Fruits, vegetables and herbs don’t have to be relegated to a rectangular bed in the backyard. Consider integrating these beautiful plants that grace us with food into your traditional landscape. Expand your edible palette with the following plants that exhibit great ornamental appeal.

Trees

Apple, pear, plum, cherry or the more exotic persimmon, quince and fig. Dwarf forms are available as well as grafted combinations. Apple, pear and fig lend themselves to espalier (trained horizontally) to grow against a fence, side of the house or a garage. Sweet bay (laurus nobilis) evergreen is a perfect accent as a small topiary tree and also as a shrub form for hedging.

Hedging and borders

Grow your own fresh, sweet blueberries (vaccinium) as an informal hedge. They are available in highbush (5-6 feet tall), semidwarf (3-4 feet tall) and also dwarf, which only grow to 18 inches tall. Blueberries produce abundantly in our climate.

Evergreen huckleberry

(vaccinum ovatum)

A delightful native with small, glossy green leaves, delicate creamy-pink flowers followed by small, sweet-tart bluish blackberries. Much overlooked as an ornamental that thrives in partial sun.

Rosemary (rosmarinus)

• Arp — hardy to 0 degrees, growing to 3 feet tall
• Tuscan blue — hardy to 10 degrees, growing to 5 feet tall
• Goldust — hardy to 10 degrees, growing to 18 inches tall with soft golden-green variegation

Bold accent or architectural presence

• Artichoke (cynara) displays stunning, deeply cut, silver-gray leaves in a large bold clump, as well as delicious edible buds.
• Elderberry (sambucas) “black lace” has intense purple-black, finely-cut foliage and soft-pink frothy flowers followed by purple-red fruit. Let it grow into a small multitrunk tree or prune for a large striking shrub.
• Rhubarb (rheum) has large, majestic, tropical-looking leaves with bright crimson stalks — fun to mix into a perennial shrub border.

Bronze fennel (foeniculum v. purpureum)

A favorite ornamental herb with sweet anise-tasting fronds and stronger flavored seeds is a perennial growing to 6 feet. Airy, ferny foliage emerges a bright copper then deepens to rich bronze in summer.

Vining or vertical forms

• Perennials — train up posts, arbors, stairway railings, trellis or fencing
• Grapes (vitus) — purple-leaved variety is gorgeous
• Hardy kiwi (actinidia) — male and female needed
• Hops (humulis) — The golden variety is stunning with glowing leaves and flowers like paper lanterns. Vigorous.
• Annuals — excellent to grow up tee-pees, trellis or any unsightly object
• Peas — sugar-snap, Oregon pod or English shelling
• Beans — blue-lake, Kentucky or scarlet wonder with bright red flowers
• Nasturtiums — Charming lily padlike leaves are studded with jewel-toned edible flowers.

Ground covers, rockeries and tuck-ins

Tuck in fragrant herbs to nooks and crannies. The following are particularly well suited:

Roman chamomile (anthemus nobilis)

Thyme (thymus) — lemon, silver, Doone Valley. Elfin and wooly thyme are excellent matlike growers for gaps between paving.

Oregano (oreganum vulgare) — Golden with a milder flavor or Greek, the classic Mediterranean aromatic

Yerba buena/savory(satureja) — This lovely herb thrives in shady, moist spots.

Consider also these mixers and minglers with presence.

Parsley — so fresh and ferny

Chives — to create small grassy clumps with cute-as-a-button, puffy, purple flowers that are also edible

Bloody dock/sorrel — This is a gruesome name for a spectacular, edible perennial with seersucker leaves and wine-colored veining. It will accept part sun and moist soil.

Molly Lavelle is a certified nursery professional and designer at Newcastle Fruit and Produce.

Cold weather shouldn’t scare you if your house is adequately prepared for fall and winter. However, many homes aren’t prepared, and leaks can make the interior lose heat quickly when the mercury drops outside.

Department of Energy A technician checks the readings from a door blower. The house is sealed and the blower sucks out air, revealing any leaks elsewhere in the home.

Northwest Homecrafters Inc. owner Wayne Apostolik said the key to plugging leaks and keeping your house warm is sealing first and insulating second.

Apostolik has worked in construction for 18 years, specializing in home remodeling. His company is based in Seattle, but is a member of the Newcastle Chamber of Commerce and had a booth at the Earth Day celebration in Lake Boren Park in April.

He said it is crucial to seal a home before insulating, and he used an analogy of a sweater and a windbreaker.

Adding insulation is like putting on a sweater, he said; the wind will blow right through it. However, sealing is like putting on a windbreaker. Together, the combination is effective and helps keep a person warm. However, without sealing, the insulation acts as nothing more than a filter.

“Those are the most basic things a homeowner might want to be aware of,” he said.

Of course, before you begin sealing, you need to identify from where the home is leaking. Northwest Homecrafters offers a service that measures air pressure within the home and uses the data to pinpoint leakage. This is part of an energy audit, Apostolik said.

Ronnie Kweller, spokeswoman for the Alliance to Save Energy, said such audits allow homeowners to set the pace for home improvements.

“You get a very good picture of where you stand energy efficiency-wise, and you can decide what steps you might want to take immediately,” she said.

The nonprofit Alliance to Save Energy is a coalition of business, environmental and government leaders based in Washington, D.C.

If you want to do it on your own, Apostolik said there are some things you can do.

“The main thing would be to use caulk and use feel to find leaky areas around windows,” he said.

However, if you’re serious about plugging the holes in your home, it may be worth spending some money to do a study, as you may be missing leaks around the house. He said Northwest Homecrafter’s energy audits can find unexpected leaks and help lead to a 25 percent to 35 percent reduction in energy usage in a given home.

Once you have found the leaks and plugged the holes, the next step is insulating, but this step is tricky.

“Insulation installation is extremely important to be done right, and most people don’t install it correctly,” Apostolik said. “If it’s going to be done, it needs to be done right.”

However, he said one of the most important principals of adding insulation is ensuring that the insulation is in physical contact with the elements it is to be insulating, such as the walls in your home.

To demonstrate this principal, he used an analogy of a down quilt, which represents insulation. If the quilt is touching you, it is effective in trapping your body heat. But if the quilt is lifted four or five inches off your body, it is not as effective, as convective currents can flow through the gap between your body and the blanket.

Furthermore, Apostolik said that one’s best bet is sealing and insulating before undertaking an expensive process, such as replacing windows.

“It’s very expensive, especially if they do a nice job with nice windows,” he said, adding that with proper sealing and insulation, replacing windows may be unnecessary.

Kweller said the prospect of smaller utility bills might also be a draw for homeowners.

“It’s a tough economic time for a lot of people,” she said. “Maybe they realize that saving on energy bills is something that’s within their capability to do, and they want to do it.”

There is one other thing homeowners may want to take into account when the temperature gets extremely cold: freezing pipes.

Apostolik said freezing pipes is not usually a major issue in the Northwest, because the temperature usually doesn’t get low enough. But, when the temperature gets cold enough that the temperature in your crawl space or attic drops below freezing, take notice.

He said the key is making sure water doesn’t sit in these cold areas long enough to freeze, because when water freezes it expands, and that can burst your pipes. Did somebody say bad day?

There are a couple of options when it comes to protecting your pipes when it gets this cold: insulate and or keep the water moving.

Regarding the latter, you don’t need to take preventative steps unless you are away from the house for a day or two and will not be running your water at all. If you are away, simply keep a faucet on just enough that it steadily drips.

Finally your house is warm, but what’s the best way to keep your bill reasonably cheap? Puget Sound Energy offers a couple of simple tips.

First, set your thermostat at the coolest level you can without being uncomfortable. Each degree you lower the thermostat will reduce your bill by about 2 percent. Also, turn down the thermostat at night or while you’re away from home. Setting the thermostat to 58 degrees while you’re asleep can cut a natural gas bill by as much as 7 percent.

Now, you’re ready for the cold.

What to know

• In addition to a home energy audit, homeowners can take other steps to save money and support renewable energy.
• Puget Sound Energy has information about rebates for appliances, heating and cooling systems, light bulbs and insulation at www.pse.com/solutions/foryourhome.
• PSE also offers a Green Power program to support renewable energy generation. Learn more about the program at www.pse.com/energyenvironment/ renewableenergy4.

Every winter, the gray colors seem to cover us like a shroud. All the gardeners I know like flowers, the brighter the better, so winter hits us especially hard.

I noticed that no colors are bright in winter except for maybe school buses and some Volkswagens. Most colorful objects reflect the low light, creating glare as opposed to color. The next time you’re driving, notice how monochromatic all of the cars are. Even the red ones are mostly gray. The shinier they are, the grayer they appear, because they shine with the color of the road, the sky and the surroundings.

Also, wet surfaces shine, and boy do we have wet surfaces. Water can make the ground, streets, sidewalks, decks and patios turn gray like the sky. It’s my hope that we keep our gardeners here, and that they learn to see the beauty of the gray winter landscape.

Most of us enjoy the winter form of deciduous trees, the bark of the birch, Stewartia and red twig dogwood, the rugged structure of the Hawthorne and oak, and the delicate branching of the Japanese and vine maples. I don’t need to wax poetic about the winter beauty of deciduous plants, but I’d like to share an idea for suffering gardeners. Let’s appreciate shades of gray and reflections. Take a step from observing the obvious, brilliant colors of summer to grooving on the subtle colors of winter.

It’s easy to enjoy the lighter shades of gray on the foothills as they recede into the distance. But try noticing the shadows in your garden. All shadows are not the same color. Shadows in grass are varying shades of gray green. Shadows against a blue house are varying shades of blue gray. They are sharpest and opaque close to the object, but soft and transparent as they stretch away from it. The north sides of both deciduous trees and conifers appear almost black against a bright, southern sky, bringing extra drama to any scene.

If you do see a spot of color, check out its coverage. It’s probably not very big. If a child tries to draw the object, it would be all bright red or all yellow with no gray shadows. That may be how children survive the winter. If you are aware of the gray and intrigued by it, its devastating effect may go away for you, too. Don’t let it get you down.

And when you do get a glimpse of that bright little spot of color, it might look rather shocking like a school bus or a Volkswagen. Just repeat to yourself — gray is a good thing. It calms us and forces us to ponder the subtle things in life. It also makes us really appreciate summer.

Jane Garrison is a local master gardener and landscape architect who gardens in glacial till on the Sammamish Plateau.

Here are a few tips for preparing your property:

• Unplug all appliances.
• Drain the water system to prevent pipes from freezing.
• Inspect your property for openings and remove all food to keep out rodents.
• Adjust the thermostat. In colder climates, thermostats set at 55 degrees will help to prevent pipes from freezing. In warmer climates, air conditioning should be turned on to prevent humidity damage.
• Clean gutters and downspouts and trim dead tree limbs.

It’s also important to make your home look lived in, Melton said. Empty houses are often targeted by thieves and vandals. To help make your house appear occupied:

• Put interior and exterior lights on time sensors.
• Suspend mail and newspaper service.
• Hire someone to clear snow from your driveway.

The Institute for Business & Home Safety also offers additional tips for protecting your home at DisasterSafety.org.