Home

• Shut off water to washing machine and remove water supply hoses. Check washers. Replace hoses that are damaged or where fittings are badly corroded. Check the owner's manual for any other maintenance recommendations.
• Check all handrails and steps. Handrails should be secure and steps should be solid and safe. 
• Check furnace filter. Clean or replace, if necessary
• If you have a tilt-up or sectional garage door, check the bottom seal, to see if it's damaged or worn. The seal not only helps to reduce air penetration, but helps to keep a wooden door from coming into direct contact with damp or wet concrete or asphalt.
• Disconnect the garage door opener. Lubricate hardware. A qualified service technician should adjust springs on sectional or overhead doors.
• Phone your supplier of gas and/or electricity, to see if they will audit your energy use and give you suggestions for ways to reduce costs.
• Do a security check around your house. For example, look for landscaping that could obstruct a burglar from being seen, outdoor lighting that doesn't work, and locks that need repair or replacement. Your local police department may be able to assist you with the check. Trim landscaping and make needed repairs.
   

Garden

• Move frost-tender potted plants to protected spots.
• Spray peaches and nectarines with a copper-based spray coupled with a spreader sticker soon after leaf drop to help control peach leaf curl.
• Lawns can be cut closer. If desired, set your mower to cut at 11/2 inches for a neat, close-cut look.
• Sprinkler systems can be turned off if sufficient rainfall has occurred and the soil is wet. Conserving vital water is still needed.
• Sow seeds of these annuals for easy winter color: Sweet alyssum, bachelors buttons, forget-me-not, larkspur, cornflowers linaria, Johnny-jump-up, sweet peas and Virginian stock.
• Fertilize annuals and winter-blooming perennials set out last month.  Use OSH brand Superfine All-Purpose fertilizer.
• Prune any fruit trees after leaves have fallen. Clean up debris under the trees to prevent hiding places for insects and overwintering disease organisms.