So you are getting ready to go on a trip, but you forgot to contact the post office and have your mail held.

Most area's now allow you to have your mail hold request done electronically.

You can go to: https://holdmail.usps.com/holdmail/landingView.do

Just follow the directions and you can have your mail held for 3-30 days with no extra trip required!

You have some unpainted wicker and/or bamboo furniture that you want to keep looking good. It is actually quite simple.

The next time that you are out shopping pick up a bottle of furniture grade lemon oil. At the beginning of spring and the beginning of fall apply the lemon oil.

This will help prevent it from drying out and cracking from weather and sun.

Good baking pans are expensive so with a little care you can make them last a long time.

Try to wash your baking pan directly after using them. While the pan is still hot, wipe it down with a bit of paper towel. Then set the pan aside and let them cool off a bit. While they are still warm, wash it hot soapy water to get the remaining oil residue off.

You can place them on a draining rack to dry a bit while you finish your dishes, but as soon as you are done, grab a soft dry cloth and dry them thoroughly. Make sure that you get water from all of the cracks and corners.

I do not stack my pans directly, even cookie sheets. I use old rags or towels that I do not use for decorative purposes anymore and place them between the pans. If you store your pans vertically, I have some old floppy cutting boards that I place between the sheets so that they do not touch. This will keep the pans from rubbing against each other and chipping or scratching the finish.

You have some Iris and you are confused about when to cut them back.

In the winter, once the weather has cooled down and the sun is not out as long, you can trim the fans to about 5 inches.

If you do it too soon, the plant will not get as much nutrition from photosynthesis to promote the next years growth.

At any other time you can remove leaves when they become damaged, brown, or diseased.

When thinning them, try to dig them up for transplanting in the late fall or early winter about the time that you normally would cut them back for winter.

When transplanting iris, you can dig them up, then trim back the greens to about 3-4 inches.

This will help give the plant more energy to root once they make it back into the ground.

When you replant, plant them at least 8 inches apart. Lay the rhizome horizontally in the shallow hole that you dug.

Barely cover with soil and mulch well for the first couple of winters.

You just love your lilacs but you are not sure how to take care of them.

Here are a few basic tips for keeping them blooming beautifully.

Lilacs need a minimum of 6 hours of sunlight each day. If they do not receive the direct sun, they will not bloom as well.

Lilacs like to be watered. Make sure to water them well when there has not been much rain. You can add mulch to help preserve moisture.

Only prune your lilacs after they have bloomed in the spring. If you prune them at any other time, you chance trimming off buds that will appear next year.

You do not need to fertilize lilacs. If you feel that you must, you can use a balanced fertilizer once every 2-3 years.

If your plant is not blooming, don't forget that they can take anywhere from 2-5 years to bloom depending on the species.

You like to BBQ with briquettes, but you always tend to have issues. Here are a few tips to help your next BBQ turn out a success.

Open your grill and lay out the amount of briquettes that cover the bottom of the grill and extend out about an inch past your food.

Mound them all in the center of your grill and light with a long match if they are self-lighting.

If they are not self lighting, sprinkle with some lighter fluid. Use no more than one or two squirts from the can. Let them sit for about a minute before lighting.

Let the briquettes remain in the mound until they are light gray in color. Once they are all uniform in color spread over the bottom of the grill.

You can test the coals with your hands. Hold your hand over the coals, approximately where the food will be placed. Count out the seconds using the thousand method, (one thousand one) If you are unable to keep your hand over the coals for the following times, here are the approximate temperatures:

2 seconds - Hot
3 seconds - Medium Hot
4 seconds - Medium