Top drawer

Garden pest deterrent

The editors at Real Simple magazine recommend sprinkling eggshell shards around the stems of outdoor plants to keep snails and slugs at bay.

Clean those baseboards

I was tooling around the Internet during a break from what feels like endless spring cleaning when I came across some tips for cleaning those stubborn, dust-magnet white baseboards. I usually just run my vacuum's brush attachment or a Swiffer across them. Other tips I found included using an old pair of socks stretched across your foot or hands and quickly running them across the boards. This would be an easy task to assign to children.

Another mom suggested running a dust broom across the boards and sweeping up the dust with the accompanying dust pan. I've read that Mr. Clean Magic Eraser does a great job of tackling the dust and grime that build up on the boards.

But I found the best way to clean baseboards is to strip painter's tape across the top edge of the boards. Let the tape sit for an hour or two and then pull it up. Voila! All of the dust is magically stripped away, and, at least temporarily, the boards look brand new!

Win a Kitchen Aid mixer

Goodlifeeats.com is offering a sweet deal to bakers and cooks who would like to add a new Kitchen Aid mixer to a kitchen counter.

Go to www.goodlifeeats.com/ and leave a comment at the bottom of the thread about which Kitchen Aid item, other than a mixer, you would most like to have. The contest ends at 11:59 p.m. Sunday, and you may enter only once, unless you follow directions on the site for multiple entries. One grand prize winner will receive a Kitchen Aid Cook for the Cure Edition Artisan Series Stand Mixer in light pink, valued at $349. The winner will be chosen via random.org and will have three days to respond before a new winner is chosen. Good luck!

Banish brown grass

To combat the sun's browning effects on your yard, the Orange County Master Gardeners suggest applying about an inch of water per week. Too much water can be wasteful and too little produces shallow-rooted plants. Do not fertilize cool-season lawns now. Fertilize Bermuda grass and zoysia grass this month with a nitrogen fertilizer if you have thin areas.

Plant lavender

Visit Hillsborough Farmers' Market from 8 a.m. to noon today to learn the basics of planting aromatic lavender. There will be hands-on demonstrations on the basics of planting, fertilizing, pruning and troubleshooting the purple beauty. Experts will be on hand to answer questions. The clinics are free, and there's no need to register. The market is in the parking lot of the Home Depot at 625 Hampton Pointe Blvd.

Another clinic will be held 8 a.m. to noon May 21 at the Western Wake Farmers' Market in Cary (1226 Morrisville-Carpenter Road).

Tip of the week

In the book, "Baking Soda: Over 500 Fabulous, Fun and Frugal Uses You've Probably Never Thought of," Vicki Lansky suggests using a solution of white vinegar and baking soda to remove cooking oil easily from your stovetop.