It’s my favorite time of the year: time to play in the dirt! Here’s a list of some of my favorite gardening tools and resources.

1. Weeder and mini raker. This weeder really helps me get weeds out by the root, and the mini rake is great for getting rid of dead leaves in between plants. I got these last year at the Smith & Hawken store http://www.smithandhawken.com/index.jsp in Georgetown.

2. Plants at the Takoma Farmer’s Market. http://www.takomaparkmarket.com/ This market has a fabulous selection of locally-grown vegetable, herb and flower plants. Plus, you can get some great advice and tips directly from the growers. There’s always a parking spot, but if you get there late you might have a long walk – bring a friend to help you carry all your plants.

3. Gardening Velcro tape. I lost count of how many rolls of this tape I bought last year at Strosniders, http://www.strosniders.com but I won’t have to buy any this year because it’s reusable. Great for tying up tomatoes. Continues after the jump (more…)

Backyard Fence, originally uploaded by Prince of Petworth.

A little over two years ago I asked if good fences make good neighbors? This week a reader wrote:

“Dear PoP,

When some of our friends heard we were putting up a fence, they asked us whether we had asked our neighbors to “chip” in for it, since, in theory, they would benefit from the addition. This hadn’t occurred to us at all, but our friends told us that it was what people did when they put up fences….Well, we ended up dancing around the subject with one of the neighbors before giving up, and with the other one, we didn’t even bother. So what are your thoughts on this? Should neighbors offer to pitch in for their neighbor’s fences when they benefit from it? Should neighbors expect to be asked to chip in? Also, with something like a privacy (wooden) fence, are you supposed to put the “nice” side out, or in?”

It’s an interesting question. My neighbors, with whom I have a very good relationship, are currently putting up a fence. As for whether I would chip in the answer is – absolutely not. Quality privacy fences are rather expensive. While I will ostensibly benefit from the fence, I didn’t ask for it. Because I have a good relationship with my neighbors, if they asked me to chip in, I’m sure we would have had a very civil conversation about it. In this case they did not ask me. Do you guys think the neighbors should chip in?

As for where does the good side go? I’d say, since I’m (the neighbor) is not paying for it, the “nice” side should go wherever the one paying for it wants it.

Like I said, I have a great relationship with my neighbors. Not only are they super nice, but they have shoveled my walk, mowed my yard, brought in my garbage cans… I swear I’m not that lazy! One of my finest memories was when another neighbor and I were sitting on the porch and this neighbor said, “hey would you guys like a glass of whiskey?”. She then brought us out two glasses of whiskey and went back inside. Truly a beautiful neighbor. I preface this because I’d like to revisit the message that a privacy fence sends. In this case my neighbors have two dogs and it’s clearly not an insult to me or the neighbor on the other side. But in general, I’m curious what you think the message of a privacy fence sends, if it’s not just facing the alley but in between homes as well?

DSCN8294, originally uploaded by Prince of Petworth.

Earlier in the week we looked at this building on the 600 block of S Street, NW. A reader commented:

“God I love this place!!! I snuck into the Wonder Bread Factory two weeks ago. There are thousands of bikes inside its like a chop shop.. its the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.”

She was kind enough to let me post some photos of the inside:

In an email the reader writes:

“Interesting to note: I called the cops about the bikes …”they had other priorities”. After doing some research I found out they have been there for a while.. with no investigation initiated.”

Pretty wild, yeah?

DSCN5316, originally uploaded by Prince of Petworth.

In real life, hipchickindc is licensed as a real estate broker in the District of Columbia and Virginia, and as a real estate salesperson in Maryland. Unless specifically noted, neither she nor the company that she is affiliated with represented any of the parties or were directly involved in the transaction reported below. Unless otherwise noted, the source of information is Metropolitan Regional Information Systems (MRIS), which is the local multiple listing system. Information is deemed reliable but not guaranteed.

Featured Property: 3516 10^th St NW

Original List Price: $699,900.

List Price at Contract: $489,900.

List Date: 7/25/2008

Days on Market: 187

Settled Sales Price: $465,000.

Settlement Date: 03/31/2009

Seller Subsidy: $10,000.

Bank Owned?: YES

Type Of Financing: Conventional

Listing History: There was no old listing to be found and no info in the public record so this had probably been last purchased some time ago.

Original GDoN Post is:Here.

Recent Listing: Here.

The Prince’s original title for this Good Deal or Not (GDoN) was “Another Fixer Upper Edition?” There were just too many other good titles, though. I seriously considered “Brave Buyer Edition”, or maybe “Only in DC Edition”, or maybe even “Why Real Estate Agents Don’t Make Enough for What They Do in DC Edition”.

Ben Puchalski with Keller Williams Capital Properties, the listing agent for this property, was kind enough to relate the whole gory tale of the transaction. For those who have absolutely no idea what I am talking about, this property was both a foreclosure AND was occupied by SIX tenants. Transactions involving tenants in DC can be extremely challenging due to extremely tenant-friendly laws and require many more steps than an owner-occupied or unoccupied property.

I make the point that the buyers were very brave indeed in that apparently, they are planning to live in the property but went to settlement with the tenants still there. If the tenants decided to not cooperate, as anyone knows who has tried to remove a non-paying tenant in DC, it would be many months of paying the mortgage but still not being able to live there. Hopefully, all will work out.

Sorry, I got so wrapped up in the tenant issues, I forgot whether this was a GDoN. Actually, for the location and size of the property (this house is huge), even though it will need work, I think the buyers did pretty well for themselves.

DSCN8170, originally uploaded by Prince of Petworth.

Congrats to Sanjay:

“Dexterity Driving School: No extra charge for irony.”

photo, originally uploaded by Prince of Petworth.

Thanks to a reader for sending (from Thurs. morning):

“Another terrible crash on the Columbia Road Speedway (500-600 block), this one involving a busload of children on the way to school. What will it take for MPD and DDOT to do something about this pervasive speeding problem on this street?”

DSCN8326, originally uploaded by Prince of Petworth.

I saw the owners putting the finishing touches on this one. Fish coming soon!

DSCN8308, originally uploaded by Prince of Petworth.

Another non traditional one. I’m dying to know what this says, anyone?

DSCN8219, originally uploaded by Prince of Petworth.

The house at the triangle of 11th Street and Vermont Ave has finally been completed. I had shown this house in various states of renovation previously. I think it came out great. I’m hoping the owners let me take some interior photos.

File under purely scuttlebutt, I heard that this corner building at 14th and W may possibly become a bar/restaurant (by well known owners) with an outdoor patio area where there is currently a parking lot. It seems like the building would require a lot of work so we probably won’t see movement on this one for quite a while but I’ll keep my eyes on it.

In its original glory I’m sure this sign looked super fresh. I wonder how much it would cost to refurbish?

And here’s a bonus reader submitted one from the Milwaukee airport:

Awesome!

I know it’s hard to judge these building before they are completed but I like comparing them during and after construction. This one is located on Rhode Island Ave near 5th Street, NW. I think the front seems quite promising. Any initial impressions?

Wow. This shot by binklesworth is amazing.

Submit your photos via email or to the PoPville flickr pool here.

This home is located at 212 P Street, NW:

View Larger Map

The flier says:

“Charm, Dignity, & Character best describe this Meticulous Renovation! Lrg House or 2 Sep Units -Upr Unit(3BD, 2.5BA, 2Lvls, GourmetKit w/ maple cabinetry, top-of-the line ss appls, fpl, hwd floors. Mstr Suite w/ skylights and luxurious ba w/ jetted tub, jetted shwr, bidet, dbl sinks). Lwr Unit(1BD, 1.5BA, LR/DR combo, Sep Kit w/ corian counters) Deck + CvrdPrkg”

More info and photos found here.

This is a serious renovation edition. Not a lot of original details seemed visible from the photos but I did like the exposed brick walls. The asking price has dropped from $649,000 to $599,000. Seem reasonable?

Chez Hareg is located at 1915 9th Street, NW. From their Web site:

Hareg Messert is an entrepreneur who has a passion for baking. She grew up in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia where she shaped her vision at the early age of 16 and honed her craft by baking delectable pastries for family and friends. While working under critically acclaimed Chef William, who kept encouraging Hareg, they determined it would be best if she went to culinary school. Nearly a decade after her sweet sixteen she started taking professional classes to fine tune her craft at Stratford University, Culinary School. Hareg was able to develop her fervor and share this with every person who walks into Chez Hareg.

You can see some delicious looking photos here.

They even have vegan cookies.

Any fans out there?