It's pretty simple to plant bulbs in the fall and then welcome their blooms in the spring. For the greatest success, you should plant bulbs about six weeks before the ground freezes. When you plant the bulbs, you also need to water them. Here are a few more tips to help you get those beautiful spring blossoms going in the fall:

• Make sure you plant your bulbs at a depth three times their height – you can increase this if you live in a cold climate to ensure survival over the years. If you're planting a group of bulbs, remember to plant each bulb at three times its width from the previous bulb.

• When planting tulips, daffodils, and other pear-shaped bulbs, the pointy end should be up. If you can't tell (sometimes it's hard to distinguish), just plant the bulbs on their sides.

• In order to keep track of where you've planted your bulbs, it's a good idea to plant at least one grape hyacinth (muscari) in the middle of a grouping. The reason – this bulb will sprout leaves in the fall. This will help you in the future if you're putting out more bulbs, so you won't accidentally dig into an already planted bulb or group of bulbs.

• Many consider a slow-release bulb fertilizer the best food to use – not bone meal. Sprinkle the fertilizer on the ground after planting, in the spring when there is breakthrough growth, and after the flowers are gone.

• Don't neaten up the dying foliage after your bulbs have flowered. This browning of the leaves must be allowed to take place, as it's a photosynthetic process and feeds the bulbs so they can come back the following year.

• If you would like to learn more about planting bulbs take a trip to www.bulb.com .

– Adapted from Real Simple

Some picklemakers swear that pickles are good for you. That's what Dolores Mason, a 72-year-old prizewinning picklemaker from West Virginia , says: “There's something in vinegar that's good for your body.”

Regardless of whether a vinegary pickle is good for you or not, recently pickles have been enjoying a resurgence in popularity. Why the newfound love of the pickle? It could be due to the introduction of trendy flavors (pickles infused with hot peppers and citrus) and the recent craze for low-carb diets, because – you guessed it – pickles are low in carbs. Richard Hentschel, executive president of Pickle Packers International, says that pickles are naturally low in carbohydrates, with the exception of sweet pickles.

According to the trade association, 67% of American households eat pickles, consuming 2.5 billion pounds each year. The biggest selling pickle in America , the dill, contains only five calories, zero grams of fat, zero grams of protein and one gram of carbohydrates.

Some dill pickles have a bit of sugar added and the sodium content is around 200 milligrams. Sweet pickles are becoming more popular as picklemakers add sugar substitutes to reduce calories. Some other new pickle flavors on the market include lemon, raisin and apple-cinnamon.